The Voiceless
by Kaneko Aikawa
Summary: In a post-apocalyptic and zombie-infested world, a group of rebels must fight for survival to preserve the dignity of mankind. Things may seem complicated...but there is some light at the end of the tunnel, coming from where they least expected.
1. Skirmish

I have returned with another story for you guys! I know that you've been patiently waiting for the next chapter of See You Again, and that will come around shortly. Apologies for the delay in writing that story. However, while you're waiting, here's another story for you guys that I have been planning for months. It was inspired by The Scorch Trials from the Maze Runner series, but it will be a completely different story. I have never written anything like this before, and I'm really excited. Thank you to those friends of mine who have loaned me their original characters.

TM11 - General Crow

ShiningMoonSlayer - Kagari

Roku Asakura - Roku Alberona

There will be more of my friends' as well as my own OCs for your enjoyment. So without further ado, enjoy...The Voiceless.

 **DISCLAIMER:** I do not own any of the Fairy Tail characters here. They are owned by Hiro Mashima. Takuma Ichijo is owned by Matsuri Hino.

* * *

 _Ur's Point of View_

This wretched world has been torn apart. Everywhere you turn, it's pain...death...destruction. The air is almost unbreathable. Is this truly Earth?...because it no longer feels like Earth to me. Everywhere you turn, ruins of buildings stand like gigantic tombstones, covered in mold and dirt in uninhabited ghost towns.

Tokyo isn't what you thought it would be...at least not like how I remember it. I remember a large bustling city, full of humans going to work and lunch...walking among the narrow streets between markets. The subway trains moving swiftly through the city, and lights from the LED screens on the buildings flashing in all their beauty. Tokyo used to be bright; it used to be busy...it used to be...home. Now it is in ruins...a depressing sight for sore eyes.

The atmosphere used to be bright too! The sky as blue as aquamarine, the trees like emeralds, the sea like sapphires. It used to be beautiful, majestic; the air used to be crisp and clean. The land used to be rich in flora and fauna. Now the Pacific Ocean is a huge dust bowl, all flowers and animals have gone the way of the dodo, the dead trees are like bony hands reaching out from the Earth, and worst of all, the brilliant blue sky is now a yellow murky colour. This is what happens when people pollute too much. It's disappointing, honestly. Now there's barely anything at all on this lifeless planet.

The only upside is that there is some life on this planet. The remaining lifeless cities are surrounded by walls that surround the city. I guess the air being unbreathable was a bit of an exaggeration. I just wish that people were happy to be alive...but that's not the case.

Even with these limited cities, there is suffering. Disease had spread rampant and there are maybe a couple hundred people left, and the disease is nothing that anyone has ever faced. It's not cancer, it's not a simple cold...it's something much more serious than that. This disease rots the skin and rots the mind. The patient becomes a lifeless drone who has become a living corpse with one thing on their mind - human flesh. Like the legendary zombies of old, one bite or any other form of contact can spread the virus. You might be wondering: how could a virus that zombifies humans be created? No one knows for sure; this is a mystery which haunted the human race for years ever since before the apocalypse started, and yet they continue living their wretched lives.

Even still, there is a silver lining to that as well. Only a few people are immune to the virus. This is a very rare case and scientists like myself believe that a cure is found in their very essence. However, no one has found that cure yet, and because of this, many people believe that it's only a myth. Despite this knowledge, a handful of others keep searching.

How they're searching, one may ask? Take the world's largest...and only research facility, Dragon Corporation as an example. They have their methods, but such methods...you would not believe what they are. I have seen children being torn apart from their families. In fact, my adopted sons were almost taken by them. I have seen people die as martyrs or trying to escape.

That wasn't all: remember those walled cities I was talking about? Dragon Corporation built those walls as a way to keep people safe...that was what they said. It is really more of a prison than a safety measure. There was always a guard at each corner and if one tried to escape, he or she would be shot down.

Resources were very limited, and there were strict rules in maintaining these resources. The rules were very bizarre: no using the toilet at night; keep to breakfast, lunch and dinner and always keep the rations small; use water for the basics like washing and drinking and don't waste anything. Wasting food and water was considered a felony, and the punishment for felonies was usually public execution.

I guess I can understand if we are living in the apocalypse, but did the Dragon Corporation have to turn into a fascist government? No one walked out in public without having someone watch their every move. Sigh...guess I will never understand our way of living. Everywhere I turned, I would see children suffering along with their parents. The decay of rotting flesh sickens me.

That was why 8 years ago I found Desert Viper, a rebel group with a base somewhere in the mountains.

 _3rd person_

The earth shook as bombs struck the surface, unleashing fire and debris like fireworks. A blonde young man no older than the age of 19 ducked under cover, his emerald green eyes sparkled with fury and determination as he panted. His senses became alert as he listened for any approaching enemy.

When footsteps were heard, he grabbed a piece of broken mirror and reflected it at the person. When his suspicions were correct, he grabbed a grenade, removed the pin and rolled it toward the person before rolling out of danger's way. The grenade exploded and screaming was heard.

"Takuma! Watch out!" A voice shouted from the distance.

Takuma looked behind him and shot the soldier in the head off guard. After looting the soldier, he breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank god, I have a twin...even if he is a dumbass sometimes." He chuckled.

"I heard that," his identical twin, Kagari said as he walked toward him.

"How's the lay of the land?" Takuma inquired as his brother stood back-to-back with him.

"Not good," Kagari answered. "We're outnumbered. Got any ideas?"

Takuma looked around. Sure enough, his brother was right. They were surrounded by enemies from all sides, each armed with rifles, grenades, and machine guns. It seemed that escape was futile. He looked at the rocky outcrops and dead shrubbery that littered the desert ground. As for what he had on him, he had two grenades left.

The soldiers that surrounded him took aim and fired. "Die, you garden snakes!"

Takuma smirked as he dodged the shots, some of which grazed his shoulder. Kagari followed suit. "I hope you have great ideas, you so-called tactician!" He shouted as he shot at some of the soldiers that were firing at him.

"Brace yourself!" Takuma called back as he took one of his grenades, removed the pin and threw it all in a quick motion. Then he tackled Kagari out of the way of the blast. He did not see what happened to the soldiers, nor did he care. He just wanted to get out of this area.

It was the same routine. Every time any of the rebels went out on a raid, they would always be ambushed, and as a result, they would barely make it home. Takuma made a name for himself as a tactician when he used his intellect to get out of the last bind they were in.

Once the smoke cleared, Kagari looked up from the rubble. "Are they gone?"

Takuma looked up as well. It seemed that the area was clear, but he knew there would be more on the way especially with a blast like that. "Seems so, but I've got a feeling that that's just the beginning."

"You're not the only one," Kagari agreed, "I'm getting goosebumps and chills."

"Then stay low," Takuma instructed as he moved through the area, bending forward as though he were blending with the desert sand. Kagari followed suit, looking around as he trailed at the rear.

It seemed that they were safe for now, but Takuma stopped. "Kagari wait," he said. He picked up a pebble and threw it at the ground, and a loud blast from a land mine went off. Both young men shielded their faces when debris fell all around them.

However, that was just the beginning as gun shots were fired through the smoke. "Fuck!" Takuma cursed as he quickly dove behind a rock, dragging Kagari with him. However, they did not move quick enough to dodge all bullets, as they grazed through their shoulders. One bullet went straight in Takuma's shoulder and he hissed in pain as he gripped his shoulder. "You're going to pay for that, motherfuckers!" He stood up and shot at the soldiers that attacked them, even though he could barely see. When another volley of shots was fired, he quickly ducked down.

"How annoying can get you get?!" Kagari exclaimed as he shot a number of bullets at the enemy, then ducked back into his hiding place.

"It was a trap," Takuma stated. He quickly grabbed a radio and turned it on. "This is Takuma Ichijo to camp. We need assistance. Come quickly! I repeat, we need assistance. Come quickly!"

Kagari peeked out from around the rock to see their attackers more fully. Sure enough, the smoke screen cleared, but he realized that the two were surrounded once again. This did not look good as escape was even more futile. "Oh...shit..."

"Tch," Takuma sneered as he stood up. There was no need to fight back anymore, especially in the predicament they were in. His breath caught in his throat for this seemed to be the end for both of them. Should they surrender and let them execute them? No, there has to be some kind of plan to get out of this!

A voice rang out from the group of soldiers. "Never knew we would see the Ichijo twins here." It seemed to be monotone, and even Takuma could slightly feel fear at this voice. However, he just pushed the feeling to the side. "General Crow..."

A man with white hair and red eyes - everything else would make you think of Sasuke Uchiha from Naruto in his final curse-mark state but no black markings - walked into view. His cold eyes would stare into your soul. Kagari narrowed his eyes at him. "It seems that both of you remember me."

"Cut the crap, Crow," Takuma snapped. "If you're here to kill us, that's fine. At least it's better than to be dragged back to that place."

"You've grown up," Crow noted. "I'm almost surprised. This is your one chance to save yourselves. I am under orders to not kill you, but you are required to give up the location of your base."

"How cliche," Takuma drawled before he smirked. "You've gotten soft, Crow. It's a miracle that you rose up in the ranks...to be Dragneel's patsy."

A soldier tensed as he took aim, but Crow stopped him. "That's enough." Then he looked back at Takuma. "If that's your best comeback, Ichijo, then I almost pity you. Perhaps I should torture your brother."

Takuma frowned as a couple soldiers grabbed Kagari's arms and forced him on his knees. Crow walked toward him and grabbed his jaw. "If you value your brother's safety, just as much as he valued yours, then give up the base."

"Then...you leave me no choice," Takuma said as he put his gun down and then held his shaking hands up in the air. "I...surrender."

"Are you serious?!" Kagari asked, shocked, but suddenly he found himself on the ground with Crow's leg on his back. The amount of pressure being put on his back made his ribs crack a bit. He forgot how strong the soldier was, and memories were etched into his mind of their first encounter.

"I'll tell you everything," Takuma said, fear quivering in his voice as he dropped to his knees. "J-Just let him go."

Crow smirked at Takuma's submission. "You're just like that little boy that was sold to Dragon Corporation - scared, confused, betrayed by his own family. It seems that you haven't grown up yet." He snapped his fingers. "Tie him up and prepare to deliver him to Natsu." He looked at Kagari. "Him as well."

However, just when the soldiers were tying Takuma up, two sniper shots were shot at the soldiers that were surrounding them. Crow raised an eyebrow at this activity. Takuma's lips moved upward in a smirk as he elbowed one soldier in the ribs hard, breaking them just before breaking his arm and throwing him into the other soldier that was about to manhandle the blonde. "If there was one thing I've learned, your mind is your greatest weapon. You should try it sometime."

Crow growled. He was not about to let some blonde-haired brat who used to be so afraid get the better of him. In his mind, he knew that this bravado that Takuma was showing was all for show. "SHOOT HIM!"

The soldiers were about to shoot Takuma when more sniper shots opened fire on them. A young woman with brown hair threw a couple knives at a couple soldiers' heads, felling them permanently. Takuma smiled gratefully at the woman, who cut the ropes that tied his hands. "My knight in shining armour," he quipped with a grin.

"Don't get any ideas now," the woman retorted. "After all, seeing you in this position..." Her eyes narrowed, "and HURT no less, makes me think that you have much to learn."

"At least I have you to take care of me, my sexy nurse," Takuma smirked.

The woman smiled. "Worry about that later." She frowned at the enemy, took out a flash grenade and threw it at them, where it exploded in a flash of light. The soldiers shielded their eyes, as did Crow. This was enough of a diversion to take Kagari and run out of there.

Once the soldiers recovered, they realized that the group was gone, and Crow narrowed his emotionless eyes. If it was a chase they wanted, that's what they are getting. He looked around at the soldiers who were still left standing. "You two, go back to base. You three, stay here in case more of those snakes show up. The rest of you, come with me." The soldiers nodded at their orders as Crow took off after the group of three.

Speaking of the group of three, they ran through the desert landscape, Takuma carrying Kagari as they ran. "Thank God you arrived, Cana," Kagari said in relief. "Thought we'd be goners there."

"Yes well, shut up and keep running," Cana instructed.

"Yeah, considering how much time they have to recover before they pursue us again," Takuma pointed out.

"Don't worry," Cana assured. "Rogue and Sting are ensuring our escape. They're leading the sniper unit as we speak."

Takuma smiled. "Good."

As soon as they heard sniper shots, they realized that Crow and his soldiers have recovered from the blast. However, Takuma and Kagari knew what Crow was capable of, so this might be more difficult than they thought. Takuma set Kagari down. "Kagari, go run off with Cana. I will cover you from the flanks."

"You fool!" Cana snapped. "You're hurt!"

"This is nothing," Takuma said while looking at his shoulder, "You should know that I have a high tolerance for pain and I've had worse."

Cana growled. "Takuma, if anything happens to you, I will never forgive you."

Takuma kissed her. "Don't worry about me, Cana. Now keep running." He took out a couple of magnum pistols and clicked the safety off both of them.

"You better have an idea, brother," Kagari said.

Cana grabbed his arm. "Don't worry about him, Kagari. If he has a plan, he has a plan. We need to focus on getting back to base."

"Roger that," Kagari replied as he ran off with her. Takuma followed close behind, ears clear of any movement that would be heard behind them.

Meanwhile, Crow and his soldiers trailed about a kilometre behind them. Up ahead, a blonde young man with a scar on his left eyebrow adjusted his cross-hairs as he watched the soldiers run through the ravine. He held one hand at four snipers beside him and then pointed at the soldiers down below. Following the signal, the snipers opened fire at the soldiers, killing them as they ran.

However, Crow was more aware than any of them. When he was being shot at, he dodged the bullets and used his physical agility to run along the wall of the ravine.

"Is this guy for real?" The blond man asked out loud as he watched him. "Shoot him down." The snipers followed through with his orders and continued firing. However, Crow grabbed onto a dead branch and flipped himself in the air, where he shot at the snipers that were shooting at him. With his deadly accuracy, he managed to shoot them all in the head. Blood sprayed as they fell, and the blonde man watched in shock.

"FUCK!" He took aim and shot at Crow, but his arm was shot just as he took the shot. The bullet grazed Crow just before he hit the ground, but the pain never bothered him too much. After all, he was trained to be a weapon of Dragon Corporation, and he was a fighter through and through. He took off into a run after Takuma and his group.

The young man took out his radio and called for back-up. "White to Shadow, do you read me?"

A voice answered from the other end of the receiver, "Shadow here."

"The target killed some units on my end and should be running toward you. You have him in your sights?"

A man in a black cloak stood about a mile and a half away from the blonde. Locks of black hair partially covered his eyes as he scoured the area with a pair of binoculars. "Well?!" The blonde demanded impatiently. The man in black lowered his binoculars. "Yeah...I see him alright, and don't worry. I've got him right where I want him." He turned off his communicator and signaled for the snipers around him. "Be wary, he's dangerous."

"Hai, sir!" The snipers replied in unison.

The man looked at a woman beside him. Blue eye-shadow decorated her ravishing eyes as raven hair flowed just passed her shoulders. "You got just the thing, Minerva?"

A devious smile spread across the woman called Minerva's face as she took out a bazooka. "It's obvious that in order to stop this bastard, we need a bit more force." She lifted the heavy weapon over her shoulder and took aim. "Keep your eye on the birdie, Crow." With that, she pulled the trigger, allowing the bazooka to fire a missile at the man in hot pursuit of her allies.

The man in black took out his communicator and operated it. "This is Shadow reporting to Ichijo. Do you read me?"

Takuma received the call. "Yeah, I do."

"Just a warning that it's about to get loud," The man in black warned.

Takuma nodded and continued running, covering his ears. "Kagari! Cana! Explosion coming!" Cana and Kagari got the message loud and clear; they covered their ears as they continued running.

However, with his alert senses, he could hear the missile coming at him and dove under cover. An explosion erupted upon impact, and rocks and debris collapsed around the soldier, entrapping him in what seemed to be a cave. The man in black watched with his binoculars and smirked. "That will hold him for now." He looked at Minerva. "Let's make our getaway."

Minerva smiled at her partner. "I want some wine to celebrate."

"When we get home," her partner replied as he wrapped his arms around her and looked at the snipers surrounding them. "We're heading home." The snipers nodded in response as they followed the couple away from the area. However, they were ambushed by a group of soldiers who were sent to that area, and a couple of snipers were stabbed with two knives thrown at their necks.

"God damn it!" The man in black cursed as he grabbed his gun and shot at their attackers, but he got a knife thrown into the barrel of his gun. Minerva gasped in shock as she grabbed her own gun, but her hand was grabbed and twisted behind her back. Then a hand grabbed her throat and held her in place.

"I wouldn't move if I were you," A voice whispered in her ear, and it made her skin crawl.

"Minerva!" The man in black yelled. Just before he could help her, a large muscular man blocked his way and punched his stomach hard, making his breath escape his lungs altogether. That was when his communicator went off. "Rogue?! Rogue!" It was the voice of the blonde man that contacted him before.

"Sting," Rogue could barely croak out. However, before he could say what was happening, the communicator was taken from him and smashed to pieces.

* * *

Takuma, Cana and Kagari kept running even though they thought they were home free. They were oblivious to what was happening to Rogue and Minerva, as they thought that the explosion would be enough to get them to safety.

The group of three stopped at the base of a mountain to catch their breath. They were no more than a mile away from the base, and they could taste freedom. Takuma's shoulder ached badly and he clenched his teeth at the pain. Just a little way to go that was all.

Cana looked at Takuma who was in pain and narrowed her eyes. "Come on, I may not have the tools needed but I will try to tend to your wound right now."

Takuma smiled. "I appreciate it." He took off his shirt, making Cana blush at his bare but scarred chest. He caught her blushing and smirked. "I can take off my pants if you want," he quipped.

Kagari rolled his eyes as he turned his back to let the couple have their moment, and Cana giggled. "Wait until we're back home," she responded as she looked at the injury. There was blood caked around it and the hole was no bigger than a nickel. She nodded for it seemed like a simple wound. "Kagari, do you have a water bottle?"

Kagari looked through his clothes, found a water skin, and tossed it toward her. Cana shook it a little to test how much water was left, and it seemed that there was just enough water to not only clean the wound but to sustain the three of them for the rest of the way to the base. She poured about a cup-worth of water on Takuma's shoulder, and he shuddered at how cold it was. Then she took a piece of clothing and cleaned the wound.

Takuma watched her intently. They hadn't been a couple for very long, maybe a year or more. Even still, she was Takuma's saving grace just like Takuma was hers.

He remembered distinctly how they met. It was four years ago on a trip to a village. Cana and her little brother Roku were taking shelter in an underground facility, and they were attending a funeral of sorts. That was what their caretakers told them, but really it was a way to keep the virus from possibly spreading. Their father contracted the virus and they - more specifically, Cana, had to kill him right away to stop it from spreading. Even though it was the right thing to do, she felt a strong remorse to be forced to kill her flesh and blood.

Once the two of them watched as their father's body and countless others went up in flames, Cana held Roku's hand while they watched - Cana's face was expressionless as though she had cried every tear. It was like she was a shell with no soul, but she knew that she had to be strong for her brother. Roku, on the other hand, wanted to be there for his sister. She made such a huge sacrifice to ensure his safety and her own, but he could also understand the damage this caused them. Gildarts was the only family they had left, after all.

Not too long after the funeral pyre, the siblings walked away from the area - Cana no different than any of the zombies they have experienced. Roku tightened his hold on his sister's hand, telling her that he was there. In return, Cana just looked at him and held him to her. Seeing her like this made Roku's heart break. There had to be some way to snap her out of this.

At that moment, Takuma entered the town with Ur and Kagari to pick up supplies. It was almost like a slum laced with dirt and depression. It made Ur sick to her stomach when she looked at the damage caused by the apocalypse, and Kagari doubted that they would find anything in a place like this. Takuma did not want to come with Ur on this mission, especially if he had nothing to do with this, but Ur told him the same thing every time: "We're here to get supplies in order to help people." He could not argue with that. She had her reasons to start this revolt, but his pessimism always stood in the way. What if they fail? He knew how powerful Dragon Corporation was, and what they were capable of. After all, he and Kagari had trouble trusting people ever since their grandfather betrayed them.

Ur went inside a house to talk to her contact who promised her that he had medical supplies for her as well as other necessary items while Kagari and Takuma waited outside. They knew that someone had to keep watch while Ur was doing her errands, and after convincing, they got the chance to keep watch.

It was no more than ten minutes since Ur went inside that it happened. The twins heard noises nearby, and Kagari ran to see what the noise was. Thinking that it may have been Dragon Corporation, Takuma yelled and cursed at his brother as he ran after him. When they arrived at the source of the noise, they witnessed - not Dragon Corporation - three thugs tormenting a beautiful woman of auburn hair and a boy with the same hairstyle as the twins but with auburn hair like his sister. It was no surprise that the crime rate is high everywhere you turn, but when there is barely anything for anyone, people act like animals.

Takuma had two voices argue in his head: one told him to leave them alone as they're not worth his time, the other told him to grow up and be a man. Telling Kagari to stay there, he ran toward the men and punched one of them just when he was being rough with Cana. When the man retaliated and punched him, Takuma grabbed his arm, broke it, and stabbed him in the chest before ripping the knife out.

The other men looked at him in fear. Arming themselves with switch knives, they ran toward Takuma and attacked him. Takuma stepped to the side, grabbed one of the switch knives, spun around and stabbed at the man's stomach. However, that man grabbed Takuma's wrist, pulled him toward him and kneed him in the stomach. The other man elbowed Takuma in the head, while the first one punched Takuma down. Then they started to kick Takuma in the ribs while he was down.

Not wanting to cower in the corner, Roku grabbed a knife and ran toward the men who were abusing the blonde, and he stabbed one of the men in the leg, earning a pained yell. Roku ripped the knife out, making the man turn and punch down at him. Takuma kicked the other man off him, grabbed his leg and broke it, earning another pained yell. Then he grabbed the other man's wrist and used the switch knife that he stole to hold it against his neck.

"Leave the kids alone," Takuma threatened in a voice that gave his hostage chills.

However, just before his hostage could accept defeat, his friend attacked Takuma from behind after he painfully stood up. As a last minute reaction, Kagari grabbed the man before he could attack and threw him back. "I believe he said to leave the kids alone," Kagari said, glaring at the man he threw.

Takuma turned back at his hostage. "Now, you have three seconds to grab your friend and get out of here. I heard another horde of zombies is fast approaching; I'm sure you're well aware of the rumours, aren't you?"

The man gulped before he grabbed his friend and ran away in a panic.

After a few hits from Roku, Takuma turned to walk away, but Cana stopped him before he could go any further. "You're safe now," Takuma assured her. "You don't need any further assistance. Just take the main road and you have your brother to keep you safe."

However, Cana was persistent. She insisted for the two of them to take her with them. Roku was unsure of her intentions, but he could see a faint light being brought back to her eyes. Maybe these people brought them hope and will continue to do so. He was not sure, but after what they did, especially Takuma, he knew he had to pay them back somehow.

She followed him like a little bird, and after goading from his brother and sister, Takuma eventually let her in. Again, Roku was unsure of this relationship, but he decided to let her do what she wanted. After all, Takuma was starting to bring a smile to her face, and in return, she was opening his heart.

Now here they were: in the shade of the desert ravine at the base of a mountain. Cana carefully pulled out the bullet from her boyfriend's shoulder, and he winced from the pain that followed. However, her soothing touch made everything better, and Takuma could forget the intensity of his injury. She wrapped the piece of cloth over his arm and tied the ends together in a comfortable tightness.

"Thank you, my sexy nurse," Takuma said with a smile as he kissed her deeply.

Cana returned the kiss. Kagari looked at them and shook his head. "Seriously, we're almost home, guys," he teased.

Takuma grabbed his girlfriend's hand. "Then let's go home. Mom must be waiting for our report." _I also want to ask Cana something too,_ he continued in his thoughts.

As they set off running toward their home base, Cana looked at her boyfriend. "Takuma," she said.

Takuma looked at her while he continued to run. "Yes, Cana?"

"I...have something that I've been meaning to tell you," She said.

Takuma stopped running and looked at her, feeling slightly worried about what she would say. "Is everything okay?"

"This may be the wrong time to say," Cana answered as she also stopped running, "as I was hoping we would talk about it when you returned from your raid."

"You were worried about me," Takuma guessed. "We all get worried about each other when we head out for our errands and fight for survival."

Cana nodded in agreement. "Well...I feel that this is important to tell you right now." She looked at him.

Takuma waited for the worst possible thing she could say. Is there someone else? Has she contracted the virus? Okay that second question would have been impossible since she was never bitten by a zombie, not that he knew of, and she had never shown the signs that she had the virus. Either way, she was his life as he was hers.

His heart fluttered when he saw her smile, a gorgeous smile that made him think of heaven in this wretched hell. He hardly remembered the sun that seemed non-existent in this world, but when he looked at her, that was all he ever needed. This may sound cheesy to most people, but she was his sun that lit up his entire world.

Happy tears brimmed her eyes as she held his hands. "Takuma," she spoke finally.

"Yes?" He said as he wiped her tears, waiting very patiently for her to tell him the news.

"I'm pre-" Before she could finish, two shots were fired and hit her in the back. Her eyes widened as her happy tears turned into those of agony. "N-no," she whispered almost inaudibly as she fell in his arms.

"Cana?!" Takuma exclaimed as he caught her. "CANA?!" Panic rose in his voice as he yelled her name. Kagari, who was running ahead, turned and looked at them. "No..." He spoke quietly as he watched in shock. However, what shocked him the most was when he saw the person who shot Cana, who was like a sister to him.

It was Crow.

* * *

And there's chapter 1 for you! Hope you enjoyed and let me know what you think. Ja Ne!


	2. Re-Group!

So I humbly apologize for the long wait for this chapter. *bows in shame* However, I hope it was worth it since I struggled quite a bit. I do have good news though. While I worked on part of this with a friend, I continued working on it until I reached well passed the desired end point. With that said, chapter 3 is just about done as well. I will post it whenever it's finished.

I do have to warn you guys that there is a torture moment that consist of slight...rape you could say? Even though it's only groping. So for those of you who are uncomfortable with it even still, please be warned!

Here is a shout-out to certain people:

Gil - the cover image and Cynthia

HarbingerofFire - Kietsu, Riza, Malik, Aiden, Sarah

Liam Bushell - Liam

I don't own any of the Fairy Tail characters, Takuma, or the characters I listed above. However, I do own Kaneko Aikawa.

* * *

Chapter 2 - Re-group!

Takuma could not believe what he just witnessed. The love of his life was about to tell him some big news, and then she was shot down. _Shot...down_ , Takuma repeated the words in his head...the words that will cause him so much dread. His hands shook as he held her close. This cannot be happening! "Cana?" His voice shook as he spoke her name softly, knowing fully well that she would never answer him.

Sure enough, she just lay limp in his arms, unmoving, still. Her eyes stared back him, but there was no longer any life. Her soft green eyes were now dull, and Takuma knew that they would never sparkle again.

The worst part of this? Takuma was about to propose to her. He was ready to take that next step. When this war is over and if they survived, they would get married and start a family together. That was the plan in his mind. It also seemed that Cana had that similar plan in mind. What was she going to tell him? _Pre?_ He went through a list of words that started with the prefix, but almost immediately, he knew what she was going to say. _No! NO!_

His whole body shook as he held her tighter. All the shock, grief and anger were washing over him all at once. His chest hurt and he could not breathe. Tears streamed down his cheeks as blood-curdling, agonizing scream escaped his lips. How could he have been so stupid? They should not have stopped, and he felt nothing but blame for himself and despair for his loss. He will never see Cana again, and this was the price he had to pay.

He will never know what his child would be like. He will never hold that child in his arms...unless...no there has to be another way! ANY way! However, he knew it was impossible. Cana must have been in her early stages, and the fetus would never survive without its mother. He lost his love, he lost his future child, he lost every possible chance of ever having the family he wanted.

And the one that took it all away was walking toward him.

Fury rose in Kagari's eyes as he glared at Crow, who just casually walked toward them with a menacing look in his emotionless eyes. "How did you..." He started, his voice croaking from the emotional wrath that threatened to surface.

"Get out?" Crow finished. "I used my intelligence, something that you half-wits lack."

"HALF-WITS?!" Kagari repeated. He took a blade from the sheath on his back. "What you did...was not smart yourself!" He ran toward Crow and slashed in all directions.

Crow took out his own sword and blocked each slash easily. Then he grabbed Kagari's wrist when he was about to slash at him again and used his sword to cut through his arm. He did not sever the arm, but he severed the tendons, making the arm useless. Kagari looked in shock when he was cut, and Crow used that to his advantage. He threw an uppercut at Kagari's chin and then a palm-strike at his chest, knocking him back. This left Kagari winded and gasping for breath.

"You lack the basic fighting skills," Crow said as he took out his gun and shot Kagari in both kneecaps, making him scream in pain.

Takuma looked up at both of them, his eyes just as lifeless as Cana's were. He wanted to move, but he was frozen in place. The agony of losing Cana was wearing him down, and now he was witnessing his twin brother baring what could be a similar fate.

The two protected each other through thick and thin throughout the trials, and they were always together no matter what the situation was. Takuma was the older twin, so he was always concerned for his brother's well-being and vice versa. Even when their grandfather put so much responsibility on Takuma's shoulders, he did not care as long as Kagari was in good hands. It was how they were raised and will continue to stand for the rest of their lives.

So why can't he move?! He did not want to be another failure, at least not twice in one day.

Crow looked at Takuma and narrowed his eyes. "There it is...that look of fear that you've had before. How does it feel, Takuma...to not only witness the death of your girlfriend but also the death of your twin as well?" He grabbed Kagari's throat and squeezed.

Kagari could feel the tight and crushing pressure that would threaten to turn his neck into a crushed aluminum can. He had to get out of there before that happened. However, he could understand his brother's fears. He _just_ lost the love of his life. How can anyone stand up from that?

"You're not going to stand and save your brother's life, just like he risked his ass to protect yours even then?" Crow asked as he looked at Takuma once more. The broken blonde said nothing; he just looked down with teeth clenched and locks of golden strands covering his eyes. "Didn't think so," Crow continued as he went to move his blade through Kagari's stomach to slice him in half.

Then Takuma's body moved on its own accord. The next thing Kagari knew was that he was on the ground, and he saw drops of blood drip on the desert ground. Judging from his brother's shadow looming over him, he could only guess what would have happened. One of Takuma's hands was in a death grip over Crow's hand that was holding Kagari's throat earlier, while the other was holding his blade. Kagari could only guess that after prying the soldier off him and grabbing his blade, his brother used his body or legs to shove him to the ground.

Crow looked in Takuma's cold face, noticing a vacant expression. "Well...this is a little surprising. So you can move after-"

Before he could finish, Takuma executed a piercing side kick into his ribs, causing him to flying several feet across the ground. Crow hit a rocky outcrop with a grunt. He never knew that this man had this much strength. He slowly stood up unhurt from the kick or the crash. "Aren't you full of surprises?"

Takuma's hands bled from being cut by the sword, but he ignored the pain completely. He just grabbed his own sword from its sheath. "Shut up," he said coldly.

Kagari slightly smirked at what was happening. He has seen Takuma like this before, and he knew the repercussions that followed. It was almost a scary thought, but this other personality that Takuma had developed over the years saved them before and it will save them again. However, it hadn't been used on Crow before, so Kagari was not sure about how this would turn out.

On the other hand, he had never seen Takuma this intense before. Should he be worried? He was not sure what would happen after this, and he dreaded it, but the most important thing right now is getting back to base in one piece.

Crow's eyes widened in reaction at this, but then turned back to neutral. "So you want to get serious..." He got into a fighting stance. "So be it."

Takuma just stood there, still as a statue, which confused Crow. After a brief moment of silence, Takuma spoke again, "Come at me."

Crow was unsure of whether Takuma was being cocky and stupid or trying to use his smarts to come up with some kind of plan to defeat him. However, whatever the blonde was planning, the chances of him beating the emotionless soldier were still very slim and they both knew that. Crow ran toward Takuma, blade outstretched.

Once Crow stabbed at Takuma several times, the latter dodged them all. "Your speed won't save you!" Crow snapped as he continuously slashed at Takuma. However, the blonde never said a word. Then Crow slashed at Takuma's head. His opponent ducked and then swept the soldier's legs. With quick thinking, Crow quickly took out his gun and fired at Takuma's kneecap.

However, Takuma used perfect reactivity to parry the bullet with his sword and then countered it with a stab toward Crow's wrist. Crow caught it and then fired again at his opponent. While the bullet got Takuma's other shoulder, he ignored the pain and stood up on his hands to kick Crow in the jaw. This made Crow stagger back and let go of his sword. Takuma then got up on his legs and ran toward Crow to slash several more times. Crow blocked all slashes easily and then got behind a rocky outcrop, which Takuma sliced through with his final slash.

This proved to be a distraction when Crow threw a handful of dirt into Takuma's face and then jumped up to stab down at him. Temporarily blinded, Takuma was unable to see Crow's attack.

"TAKUMA! ABOVE!" Kagari yelled as Takuma just narrowly dodged the stab. This made Crow stab the ground instead. Using this to his advantage and once he was recovered, Takuma took out his own gun and shot Crow. The soldier let go of his sword and somersaulted away from the bullets to dodge them.

When Takuma was more focused on hitting his mark, Crow swept his leg out, letting go three blades toward his target. Takuma widened his eyes and then parried them away. However, Crow took out five more blades and fired them at Takuma, who parried them once again...but one was missed and went through his side. This earned a yell from the young man as he gripped his wound.

Crow stood up and walked toward his blade. "While I admire your tenacity to fight until your last breath, your skills still have some flaws." Takuma just grit his teeth as he glared at his adversary with pure hatred. "You're a warrior, which I can see," Crow continued, "but even a warrior can't leave any openings." He took out his sword and walked toward Takuma. "Another flaw...while you fight with your heart, your mind is still clouded. Cana must have meant so much to you. However, you can't let that cloud your judgement...and because of this, you're merely doing nothing but flailing your arms."

Having had enough, Takuma picked up his gun and fired three times at Crow, who parried them easily. "This is what I was talking about," Crow went on, "I told you once...I'll tell you again: you...can't...win." He stepped toward Takuma and slashed downward at him.

The next thing that happened shocked all three of them. A katana stood in the way of Crow's blade, and when the soldier looked at who stopped his blade, he growled. Smirking while looking at back at him, stood a busty woman with red hair. The fire of a warrior's spirit showed in her eyes as she spoke, "Hi." She stabbed her other sword into Crow and he quickly jumped back.

Takuma looked up. "E-Erza!"

"Hello brother," Erza greeted as her eyes never left Crow. In truth, they were not brother and sister by blood, only by adoption. However, Takuma still considered her his sister, and vice versa. This also meant the same for Kagari as well.

Kagari looked at her and smiled gratefully. "It's about time you showed up," He said. Things are finally turning around.

"I didn't come alone," Erza replied. "Is that right...Aiden?"

Crow felt a tap on his shoulder, and when he turned around, he was greeted with a sucker punch to the nose and yelled in pain. "That's right," a red-haired man said as he flexed his hand.

"I will not stand for this!" Crow yelled. "Soldiers! Attack!"

Suddenly, three bloody corpses were dropped in front of him. "Oh? I'm sorry," a voice said, "Did you mean these soldiers?" A man with blue hair and a mark on the side of his face asked with a malicious grin. A blonde-haired man with a lightning-shaped scar on his left eyebrow smirked beside him, since he was the one that dropped one of the soldiers. "It's been a long time, Crow."

"Laxus," Crow snarled.

"And yet," Laxus continued, "you're still playing the part of Natsu's bitch."

"You'll PAY for that!" Crow was about to fire at him, but he was kicked in the face by Aiden. "ZUUL MOTHERFUCKER!" Aiden yelled as he kicked him. "All yours sis!"

A woman with black hair jumped down in front of Crow and landed on one foot, her katana across her face. "You don't have to tell me twice," she said as she slashed upwards. Crow blocked quickly. "Not so fast," he growled.

The woman rolled her eyes. "Is that so? You're so predictable..." Crow raised an eyebrow inquisitively. "And outnumbered!" She yelled as she kicked his ribs, sending him back.

Crow growled as he was sent back. There was no point in fighting any longer. A helicopter appeared in front of everyone and lowered a ladder. "You may have won this round..." He trailed off as he grabbed the ladder and climbed up. "But you will NEVER win this war! Have fun nursing your wounds, but mark my words...Dragon Corporation will prevail!" The helicopter flew off and pulled Crow up.

"You're not going anywhere!" The blue-haired man yelled as he went for his gun. Erza put a hand on his. "Jellal, that's enough..." She looked at Cana and softened her eyes. "We have injured people to take care of...and...another to bury."

Even though he was in pain, Takuma stopped caring about his wounds and went back to Cana. He stroke her face as soon as he arrived at her side. However, because of losing so much blood he collapsed next to her. He could barely make out the shouting of his name as he blacked out.

* * *

In a warehouse, miles away, they stood in blackness, immobilized and unable to move. The bone-chilling cold could only make their teeth chatter as they awaited their fate.

It seemed like a long while until the lights came on, followed by a voice. "GOOD MORNING! Or is it night? Oh well!" Minerva can only shudder at the psychotic voice. She could not see him because she was blindfolded, and that may be the only silver lining in her situation.

Rogue, however, was not so lucky. In the doorway of the seemingly simple basement, he saw a man with white, spiked hair. His eyes were like that of a snake, and with his smile, they were enough to make anyone look away. A muscular man of silver hair just stood to the side with his arms crossed, and a girl with shoulder length, black hair stood on the other side. It took some time to formulate his words to demand what was going on, "The hell are we? And how…are we away from the ravine?"

"Let's just say we can get anywhere," The girl answered with a slight monotone voice.

However, there was something much more important than the location in Rogue's mind and he glared at her. "Where is Minerva?"

The white-haired man grabbed Rogue's throat, making his prisoner wince from the pressure. "Try...looking around," He suggested as he forced the prisoner to look at Minerva chained to a wall toward the left-hand side. She was completely naked and a black blindfold was the only item that was on her. Rogue also realized that he was tied to a chair in the centre of the room, wearing only his underwear. However, that was the least of his worries. "Min...er...va..."

Minerva looked around, also worried about Rogue. "Rogue?! Where are you?"

The white-haired man simply smirked. "Don't worry, princess, he's here." This could only make Minerva snarl at the sound of the man's voice.

Rogue glared at the white-haired man. "If you...did anything to her..."

The man backhanded Rogue across the face with a lot of force, making him yell in pain. "Shut up, you..."

Minerva tensed at the sound of Rogue's yells. "What the hell...do you want?" She asked angrily.

The man turned back to her, his smirk returning, "Information...and to torture you."

Rogue could now guess what his reason for doing this would be. After all, Takuma and Kagari were interrogated about the same thing. "If it's about where the base is...you're not getting it."

The man walked toward Minerva and painfully grabbed one of her breasts. She tried to resist, but due to her current state, she was unable to. "We will see about that," he started to grope the breast, "let's see how long you can stand seeing her hurt."

Minerva winced as her breast was being abused. She did not want this, and it was clear that Rogue did not either. "Let go of me!" She snapped as she tried to resist.

Fury rose up a level as Rogue tried to lunge at the man, despite his current state. "DON'T YOU DARE!"

However, the man ignored both of them as he licked Minerva's neck before going down to suck on her breasts. Then he started to bite her to pleasure her to begin with, but then he started to bite hard enough to hurt her without making her bleed. She screamed in response as she tried to kick at the man to get him off her.

Fury turned into rage as Rogue thrashed in his chair. "BASTARD! THAT'S ENOUGH!"

The man removed his mouth and then starts to play with her breast just to give her pleasure for now. "So…" He looked back at Rogue, "Will you talk or shall I continue to have some…fun?" He smirked in anticipation.

With the man turning his head to face Rogue, Minerva kicked him again. "Get…off me!"

The smirk never left his face as he looked back at her and pinned her to the wall. "So cute watching you try to fight while chained to a wall." Minerva just simple clenched her teeth.

Rogue growled as he looked at them. There had to be some way to get out of this. No matter what, he cannot tell them about the base! They swore to secrecy to Ur when they joined the group, and he must not betray his loyalty.

The man got off Minerva and flicked her nipple. If plan A was not going to work, then it was time for plan B. "Maybe we should try it the opposite way," he suggested with a frown as he nodded to the black-haired woman to the right of Rogue. "Riza, finish stripping him and then blindfolded him. The one called Riza nodded as she followed his orders, despite Rogue's resistance.

At the same time, the man took off Minerva's blindfold. She was slightly photogenic, but when her eyes adjusted to the light, she could see the eyes of her captor. "Ki…etsu…" She glared at him. "I should have known just by the sound of her voice."

Kietsu smirked. "Hello lover. It's been a while." Well…more like ex-lover.

Rogue widened his eyes in shock, despite being blindfolded. "…Lover?!"

Minerva softened her eyes as she looked down. She had not been able to tell Rogue very much about her past, and she had her reasons. After all, it was something that she would rather leave behind. "There's more to me that you don't know, Rogue, but you shouldn't be surprised since I used to work with the likes of him." The glare returned as she looked at Kietsu.

"Work?" Kietsu repeated. "No, my love, you never worked with me unless you were talking about the sex we had." He kissed her forcefully at the end of his sentence.

However, the kiss only lasted for half a second when she pulled back her head and hit his forehead hard with it. "Don't you dare! I left because you would rather work for a monster than use common SENSE to see what he was really doing!"

Kietsu just rubbed his head and then grabbed Minerva's hair, his eyes flashing with irritation as he looked into her eyes. "No…you _left_ because you'd rather be with a weak little shit like _him,_ " he pointed to Rogue, "than be with me! I work for the only person who provides protection…ACTUAL protection!"

Riza did not want to wait anymore. "Where is the base, Minerva?!"

"Fuck YOU!" Minerva responded.

Riza took out a rope-like weapon, spins it and hits Rogue's balls hard with it. He screamed as a result.

"So you'd rather work for that… _psycho?!_ I can see why. You're just as psychotic as he is!" Minerva accused.

"ENOUGH TALK!" Kietsu snapped. Minerva immediately tensed. She forgot how much his yelling scared her at times. Kietsu took some deep breaths to calm down. " _Where…_ is the base?" Minerva said nothing; she just held her tongue.

However, this made Riza hit Rogue harder, causing him to scream in agony as Minerva looked on in horror. Kietsu had lost his patience. "Tell me where the base is or I will keep hurting you and him…UNTIL ONE OF YOU BREAKS!"

Minerva just held her tongue. After all, this was one of the reasons why she left him. If only he could have controlled that temper of his, then she would not have left him. Rogue, on the other hand, knew her ever since she moved into his and Sting's neighbourhood. When she met them both, they became close friends and not once did Rogue raise his voice to her.

Unbeknownst to the ones inside, a group of rebels place small stick-on mines at a good distance around the building. A woman with brown hair stood behind a building away from the mines and pressed a button on the remote control. "Surprise, surprise…" This set off the mines, making them explode around the building, causing smoke that surround it.

This made Minerva gape in shock while Rogue smirked. "Better…idea..."

Kietsu made a noise in his mouth. "Wonderful…Riza…"

Before she could do anything, a blade on a chain shot through the window from the smoke at Riza. Malik grabbed the chain before it could wrap around Riza's neck and pulled on it. However, this made a masked man jump through the window and kick Malik in the head. "Thanks for the ride, bastard!" Malik got hit and stumbled back, but he grabbed the masked man by the throat. Then, using his endurance and strength, he threw the man against the wall.

Just when the masked man was making his entrance, Kietsu growled with annoyance. He turned to Minerva and smacked her hard, leaving a visible red mark on her cheek. "I suppose you get to leave now." He ran out of the building. "Until next time, whore! Let's go, Malik!"

Riza took out a switch blade and stabbed it into Rogue, just behind the shoulder. Rogue winced in pain as he was stabbed. "Save him or go after us; it's all up to you…" She ran after Kietsu.

However, the masked man also had endurance as well as agility as he pushed against the wall and headed straight toward Malik just when he was about to flee. "You think you can escape me, bastard?!" He took out a gun to shoot at Malik. "They don't call me "the Chaser" for nothing!"

Malik turned just when the masked man shot the bullet, and it misses but just barely. However, the masked man continued shooting, and Malik took off in a run. The masked man stopped shooting and darted toward Malik, using the shadows to hide himself.

Just when Riza was running through the fading smoke, a slash was made in front of her. Because of the smoke, Riza could not see very well, but she could still see the blade, which she just barely dodged. Even still, it cut her cheek. "Argh!" She yelled as she held her cheek.

A female voice spoke through the smoke. "I'm sorry…did we say you could go anywhere?" The silhouette showed the outline of the woman – her busty figure, her slender body, her long hair that went to her waist, the blade of her katana.

"Little bitch…!" Riza snarled.

However, the smoke was also used to Malik's advantage since the vision was limited to the rebels as well. He shoved Riza forward and then punched at the one who slashed at her. However, the female warrior ducked when she was punched, and Malik's fist was grabbed by a man almost as strong as he was. "Hello...bastard," he greeted. He was tall, with black hair that went just down to his ears. Glasses covered his fiery eyes as he stared smugly at his adversary.

The woman stabbed at Malik, and Riza, who had ran off to the side, tackled her away. "Kaneko!" The man yelled. However, when he was distracted, Malik kicked his gut hard, making him hit a nearby wall with a grunt. Once both were out of the way, Malik was free to escape with Riza, despite receiving a deep gash from Kaneko's sword when she stabbed him.

The man got up, but because of his strength, he was barely hurt. "Was that supposed to hurt?!"

"No but this will!" Kietsu responded when he cut a rope, unleashing many bricks to fall onto Kaneko and the raven-haired man. Kaneko was about to get up when she saw the bricks fall. The man quickly ran toward her and tackled her to the ground, protecting her from the bricks with his body.

However, three shots were fired at Kietsu, Malik and Riza; the source of which coming from the masked man, who appeared behind them. Malik moved his bulky body in front of Riza, receiving two grazes from the bullets. At the same time, Kietsu dropped to the ground and got grazed on the arm. As a countering move, he threw a blade into the masked man's gun. The masked man cursed as he stopped firing, knowing fully-well that if he continued to fire then his gun would explode. He worked on trying to get the blade out, which left the three enough time to escape.

Cynthia glared at them as they ran. "Tch, tricky bastards…" However, she knew that there were more important things to worry about. She looked at Sting, who was standing beside her, and barked, "What are you WAITING for?! Go retrieve them!"

Sting nodded and quickly ran into the house to get Rogue and Minerva. Once he was untying them, he remarked, "You two are a mess."

Minerva glared at him and punched him in the stomach the moment he got her arms free. "You think?!"

Sting grunted as he rubbed his stomach. "Hey! That wasn't very nice."

Minerva just rolled her eyes. "Whatever…tend to Rogue and get me some clothes."

"Yes, ma'am," He affirmed as he helped Rogue to his feet. "Let's get you looked at, brother…once we arrive at the base of course."

"Sure, took you long enough though," Rogue said painfully. Sting simply apologized as he carefully put Minerva on his back, making sure that he did not accidentally grope her in the process. Rogue put an arm on Sting's shoulder as he used anything he could grab onto to keep standing. The two of them quickly but carefully walked out of the building. Cynthia immediately started to help Rogue stand when they got close enough. She looked at the pile of bricks. _Liam and Kaneko should be digging themselves out right now,_ she thought to herself.

Nearby, one called Liam shoved the bricks away with his strength. "Damn it," he cursed softly under his breath. He was bruised from the impact of the bricks, but the injuries were minor. He looked at Kaneko and helped her up. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she replied as she dusted herself off, "Thanks to you."

Liam smiled. "It was not-"

But before he could finish, maniacal laughter was heard from a loudspeaker. "I gotta say that you rebels are stupider than I thought!" Kietsu shouted.

Cynthia just smirked. So if he wanted to play this game, then so be it. "Stupider? Oh no…" She shook her head. "We're just getting warmed up, Seishin. The mission was simple: retrieve our friends. Don't worry though…we will come after you eventually."

Sting frowned. Something was off, and he knew that. After all, when he ran into the building, he saw something that reminded him of a bomb. Was that what Sting was talking about?

Sure enough, they heard a robotic voice that was reminiscent of…Minerva? "Self-destruct sequence activated…destruction in 5 minutes."

Minerva's eyes widened in shock. How did Kietsu manage to pull this off? Cynthia was infuriated when she heard this. "What?! Bastard!" The sound of a helicopter taking off was heard.

"There they go," the masked man trailed off as he watched them.

Cynthia turned to the masked man. "RAIDEN! TAKE ROGUE!" Raiden took Rogue and immediately grappled away. She turned to the rest of the group. "THE REST OF YOU, RETREAT IMMEDIATELY!"

"Don't have to ask twice!" Liam put Kaneko over his shoulders and ran as fast as he could. Sting had already taken off into a run the moment Raiden took Rogue, and Cynthia followed suit. They could barely get out of the area when the warehouse exploded multiple-times, due to the fact that bombs were placed everywhere on it.

Once Sting and Minerva ran passed a certain street, however, Minerva frowned. Sting looked up at her. "You alright?"

"There's something…I want to see," Minerva trailed off. Sting looked at the street as well and nodded in understanding. He carefully took her off his shoulders and asked, "You want me to come with you?"

"This is something I should do alone," she answered.

"Alright well," Sting took off his shirt and gave it to Minerva, "Wear it. You seem cold and you need to be covered." He was not looking at Minerva at all out of respect.

Minerva took it and put it on. "What about you? Aren't you cold?"

"Nah," Sting waved it off. "Just go do your thing, and I'll come get you." Minerva nodded and then ran down the street.

When she got to her destination, she noticed a beaten-down old house. It was not big, but it was the perfect size. Memories overtook her as she walked down the walkway. After all, she had so many memories of this house as it was her own.

She pushed through the door and looked inside. Sure enough, it looked uninhabitable. Broken picture frames, glassware, plates, and bowls littered the floor. The table was flipped upside down, and decaying flowers littered the floor beside the table, surrounded by the pieces of a shattered vase. Those flowers were a gift to her, and she trembled at the mess. After all, this was the result of a horrible fight the two had before she left. She could not believe that it was still here after all this time.

One thing was new to her though, and that was the dried blood on the floor and walls. She did not remember the blood being there, and she knew that that blood was not her own. Dread filled her as she realized that it was Kietsu's.

She followed the blood as it led to a wall and just stared at it. There was a heart drawn on the wall, surrounded by words of hatred and anger…mostly toward her but also the phrase "death to emotions". "How obsessive and rotten are you," She remarked under her breath as she read the phrases.

Among these horrible phrases, one phrase stood out. Seeing this one phrase, emotion and guilt overtook her as she fell to her knees and cried.

In Kietsu's helicopter, when their wounds were being tended to, Kietsu noticed an incoming message. He pressed a button to receive it, and the voice of a frightened woman came through. "K-Kietsu! Y-you're needed. There's been an emergency. I repeat…an emergency!"

Kietsu recognized the woman as Juvia Lockser, a scientist that worked for Dragon Corporation. "What's wrong, Juvia? You're talking weirdly."

Juvia trembled. "S-someone escaped… And Natsu-sama…Natsu-sama is livid!"

Kietsu narrowed his eyes. If someone escaped then it was so surprise that Natsu would be up in arms about it. "Oh lovely," he said sarcastically, "who escaped?"

A moment of silence was heard and then a soft whisper followed. "Subject 209…Gray Fullbuster."

* * *

Tell me your thoughts and keep an eye out for the next chapter coming soon!


	3. De-Moralized

Hello, my lovely readers and welcome to another exciting chapter of The Voiceless. In the previous chapter, I had mentioned that I had to break it down due to its length, so here is the rest of what I wrote including some additions here and there. Things do get intense here, and you will be seeing Gray in this chapter as well as the rest of the members of the Desert Viper group. Hope you enjoy!

 **Disclaimer** : I do not own Fairy Tail or Takuma Ichijo. I only own Kaneko Aikawa and the group names (would that be plausible for a disclaimer? I suppose so). Anyway! Here are the rest of the OCs! Cassy Garcia - Lillian TM11 - Crow HarbingerofFire - Kietsu, Kunou, Keria, Aiden, Sarah, Gin, Malik, Riza shiningmoonslayer - Kagari Ichijo Joao Paulo - Raiden Katsou RokuxNami3 - Roku Alberona Gil - Cynthia Leanbow - Liam Chrisboy3037 - Dan Akatsuki Without further ado, here's the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 3: De-moralized**

Dragon Corporation – hearing that name would be enough to intimidate people. Ever since they took over the world years ago, freedom was limited. Starting off as a pharmaceutical company, they rose to new heights when the founder, Igneel, wanted to try new fields of science. When the apocalypse started, they bought out the military and police force, sealing conquer over the world. While many people cower due to the facility's fascist way of government, a few know of their heinous research methods.

The co-presidents of the facility, Natsu and Zeref Dragneel, believe that their ways are for the good of the people, and they want to find a cure as soon as possible. However, the rebels living in the mountains, Desert Viper, as well as those civilians who know about the experiments, doubt that.

The current situation is so dire and serious, that just the thought of it would be enough to cause heavy turmoil among the employees. Kietsu knew this. After all, he knew Natsu quite well, given his short tempers, and Gray Fullbuster just happened to be a subject that Natsu was most interested in.

"His favourite pet subject," Kietsu stated, imagining the younger man's antics, "Lovely…and I only got worse news. Very well, I'm coming over now. Hang in there, Juvia, and calm down until I arrive." He disconnected the call and flew faster toward the facility, hoping that Natsu would not try anything to harm his blue-haired employee.

"Okay…" Juvia replied, her voice soft and timid as she trembled behind her desk. She also disconnected the call with a shaking hand and took a few deep breaths. This was going to be a long and difficult night, and she knew it. She needed something, anything, to calm her down. Maybe some tea would help?

She stood up from behind her desk and put some azure strands behind her ears. It was a simple task: go into the break room down the hallway and make some tea. However, there was one obstacle that she was afraid of, and that was the chance encounter of seeing a very irate Natsu Dragneel. She cursed under her breath, wishing for a kettle in her office. With a heavy sigh, she walked around her desk toward the door that would lead into the hallway.

Outside and nearby, a pink-haired man walked down the hall with a black-haired woman. The man wore a dressy black shirt complimented with gray pants. Polished black shoes covered his feet, and a checkered white scarf completed the outfit. This was Natsu Dragneel, the co-president of Dragon Corporation, and sure enough, a scary and furious expression was on his face. "I WANT ALL SUBJECTS AND STAFF GATHERED IMMEDIATELY!" He boomed, alerting the other employees of his presence as they scrambled out of the way.

The woman walking beside him nodded, "Yes sir." She had long black hair that reached her shoulders, and white lab coat flowed at her feet as she walked. A clip board was held firmly in one of her arms, while her other hand held a pen. When she spoke, it was a firm and professional tone, which was perfectly suited for a right-hand woman such as herself.

"Lock down ALL doors at once!" Natsu ordered.

The woman jotted down the order, "Noted."

"NO ONE is to escape without me knowing, is that CLEAR?!" Natsu continued as his eyes shifted to his assistant.

"Crystal," She replied as she wrote it down.

Patience was definitely not Natsu's strong suit. His glare became even more intense as he growled, "Why are you still here, Lillian? MOVE YOUR _FUCKING BEHIND_ AND GET GOING!"

Lillian twitched with irritation. She was only writing down the orders that he was barking at her, and his anger was giving her a headache. This was something that she had to put up with ever since she was promoted as his personal assistant. "I'm _going!_ GOD!" She threw up her hands and rushed off to fulfill her tasks.

"Slow-ass bitch," Natsu cursed under his breath as he continued to walk down the hall.

When Juvia exited her office, she accidentally bumped into Natsu. This was _not_ a good sign. She was afraid that something like this would happen. After all, she could hear his shouting down the hall and she should have looked. Blood froze in her veins as she trembled, knowing that even the slightest mistake would throw Natsu over the edge. He was known to also be…physical and violent.

Natsu looked at her intensely, his eyes showing the will to hurt. "Did…you just bump me…Juvia…?" He asked slowly, his tone making her shiver even more.

"I-I-I-I-I'm sorry, sir…I didn't mean to. Please don't hurt me…" She stammered as she backed away, despite the fact there was not much space between where she was standing and the wall.

However, that did not stop Natsu from what he was about to do next. He grabbed her wrists with both hands and slammed them against the wall. Juvia hit her head due to the force and she gasped from the slight pain that followed. "There are rules, Juvia…" Natsu snarled as he held his face close to hers.

Juvia closed her eyes tightly, dreading what he was going to do next. So much for that tea… "I'm sorry…" She apologized as tears fell down her cheeks.

Natsu's angry expression turned into a sadistic smile as he wiped her tears away. "Just…don't do it again…or else.."

Juvia opened her eyes slightly and became pale with fright. His fingers were rough, and the look on his face alone was enough to make her sick. "I…I won't."

The sadistic look on Natsu's face never subsided as he patted the scientist's face. "Good girl. You see? This is what you get for submit-"

Before he could finish, his hair was grabbed and he was thrown off Juvia. He crashed through a glass table with a screech. "Get off her…sir," the threatening voice of Malik was heard shortly afterward as the man himself glared at his boss.

Kietsu snickered as he watched. "Ouuuuuuuch, that has gotta hurt, Dragneel."

As he lifted himself up with his arms, Natsu snapped, "Kietsu…Malik…how DARE you throw your boss?!" Blood trickled from a shallow wound in his forehead, and he could feel tiny fragments from the table embedded into his skin.

Riza looked at Juvia and grabbed her arm. "Come on," she said, "let's get you calmed down."

It took a minute for Juvia to regain her voice. "O-okay," she stuttered as she walked away with Riza.

Kietsu stepped toward Natsu. "Last time I checked, my boss was Zeref. I am more loyal to him than I am to you…sir," he helped Natsu up, "And remember that I am the only one who willingly stays with you as I'm not that scared of you. So with this in mind, I advise being a bit more cautious while walking instead of being rude to someone who accidentally bumps into you, sir."

Natsu just rolled his eyes. The last thing he wanted was to be told how to run his job, but since Kietsu made some points, he decided to let it slide. "Hmph…fine." He took a step to the side. The effects of his injury weren't too bad; he could still stand upright. It was just that he was slightly wobbly since it was a head injury. However, he had enough training to withstand such pain.

He walked down the hallway with Malik and Kietsu beside him, ready to react in case he fell over. "I'm sure you know the situation, yes?"

"Yes, well, I actually came here to give you even more bad news first before we find Fullbuster," Kietsu pointed out.

Natsu rubbed his head. Could this day get any worse? "And they are…?" He whined.

"The two I had captured were saved by the rebels," Kietsu answered, "They found the small base I set up."

Natsu had it. He punched the wall with his bloody hand, making it crack a little from the impact. "They…what?!" The cut on his head stung and throbbed from his reaction, and he went back to rubbing it. Malik gave him a piece of cloth so that he can apply pressure.

"Must have been followed or they had a tracker on the two," Kietsu guessed. Then he shrugged, "Either way, they got away…but not before I tested your new…device." He smirked as he showed a silver ring on his left ring finger.

Being the co-president of a large and powerful company, Natsu had learned a thing or two about designing useful items. Just recently, he created a ring that would release nano-machines from a needle at the top of the ring. Hearing this bit of news, he chuckled darkly, "and it worked like a charm?"

Kietsu took out the device which was tracking the location of the rebels. "Yes, it's working just fine."

"Good," Natsu grinned. "We will take out those terrorists before they know it." Once they stopped in front of a mirror, Malik handed him a small jar of ointment so he can start tending to his wound.

The pinkette was almost finished applying the ointment when he heard a new voice approaching him. "Sir!" Crow walked up to the three of them with a couple of his soldiers.

Natsu rolled his eyes in annoyance as he gave the ointment back to Malik and turned to face the soldier. "What is it, Jackson?" Jackson was Crow's first name, and only Natsu and Zeref could refer to him as such. "I'm in a very important meeting right now, so if this is important, which it damn well should be…"

Crow finished Natsu's sentence, "I have bad news and good news."

Natsu twitched and tensed, "I'm listening…" He had a fist ready to break a bone of his choice, if this man would not speak up any time soon.

Crow noticed this and tensed slightly himself. He noticed Kietsu, his rival, standing beside Natsu and nodded in greeting before turning back to his boss. "My men and I managed to intercept some of the rebels, one of them being Takuma Ichijo."

Natsu's dark smirk returned. "Ichijo eh? I haven't heard that name in a long time."

Crow continued his report, "He was tricky. However, I managed to kill the one he cares the most."

Now Natsu felt excited to hear such news. His favourite thing was the thought of someone suffering, and the thought of the group of rebels losing one of their own was enough to bring a smile to his face. "Another is dead. This is GREAT!" He followed up with a maniacal laugh.

Even during Natsu's laughter, Crow concluded his report, "But I could not get the information needed…and just before I knew it, he was saved by his…allies." He tensed slightly at the humiliating loss. Still, even though he was a remarkable fighter, he knew that five on one was not a bright idea. Sooner or later, he would retaliate against them and make each of them pay for his defeat. Then he calmed down and faced his boss once more. "Either way…I broke his spirit. He won't bounce back after this major loss."

Kietsu smirked at his rival. "Good for you, little bird, but I aim for more than just one person."

Crow just looked at him with eyes devoid of any emotion. "Hmph, and you think that's going to make me react? You're good, Kietsu, I admire that…but business is business."

"Oh how stupid you are, little bird," Kietsu retorted, hoping to get under the other man's skin.

Natsu intervened quickly with an impatient frown, "And business still carries on as usual. Speaking of which…you three, come with me." He looked at Crow. "You know of the situation?"

Crow raised an eyebrow. "Situation? There's a new situation?"

The three men walked down the hallway, with Natsu in front. "Gray Fullbuster has escaped," he said, "Lillian has graciously gathered everyone."

Crow just said nothing. So another subject has escaped. This was going to be another thorn in his side, and he knew it.

"Sounds like fun," Kietsu said with a look of anticipation in his eyes, "I need to fuck Lillian before someone else does."

Shortly after he said that, he was greeted with an irritated glare of the aforementioned woman. "What was that?!" She snapped. "Know your place, soldier!"

Not wanting to get involved with this, Crow just walked passed her. "Women," he mumbled as he rolled his eyes.

However, Lillian's irritation did not faze Kietsu at all. He just simply smirked as he walked passed her. "Oh I know it, but do you?" He finished with a smack on her ass.

Lillian twitched as she turned around. "Why…you little…" She slapped Kietsu in the face. "Hmph! You're a fucking idiot!" She walked into the room.

Kietsu just chuckled as he walked after her. "She will be fun in bed," he mused. Malik just followed him without a word.

The small group walked into a large room that resembled a cafeteria of sorts, with steel benches spaced out on the cold, stone floor. Boys aged eleven through eighteen sat on these benches, each with chained shackles around their wrists and ankles. Scientists surrounded the boys in a circle, and Juvia stood with a mug of tea in her hand beside Riza. A man with sandy-coloured hair and a mark on his left eye was checking attendance while the large group waited for Natsu's arrival. This man was Jackal, and like Lillian was to Natsu, he was Zeref's personal assistant. Zeref, himself, had a lot of work to do so he could not attend. After all, Natsu was enough to interrogate the group.

Speak of the devil…the pink-haired heir walked in and immediately, the atmosphere turned cold and quiet. Tension was so high that you could cut it with a knife, and everyone was afraid to say or do anything. When he spoke, his voice echoed through the walls, and this made everyone even more uncomfortable. "Ladies…gentlemen…subjects…there seems to be a very dire situation here, and I did tell you all to cooperate but no, no, no…" He shook his head as he scolded the group, giving them all the impression that he was blaming each and every one of them. "Apparently it lands on deaf ears. 209 is missing…and now I'm hoping to get some straight answers before…" He looked around the room, and his eyes settled on Juvia. "Someone gets hurt." Juvia just trembled as she looked away from his gaze.

Natsu looked at the subjects. "You subjects were supposed to be heroes. Is that I promised you? That you would do something great for once? You did pass the first and grueling trial, seen people die, but you made it out in one piece. This goes for the next two trials, each more difficult than the last." He looked at the older boys who seem to be just as traumatized as the ones younger than them. "Now…it seems that someone doesn't want to cooperate. So the reason why I had you all gathered was to interrogate you all as a group." He looked at the staff, "this includes the staff as well."

Sitting among the subjects was a boy in his mid-teens. Bluish-white hair framed his face as he stared out into space. Black eyes seemed uninterested in what the older man had to say, as the boy just wanted this to be over already. Natsu looked at him. "Subject 210…Lyon Vastia."

Lyon looked at Natsu, annoyance showing in his almond-shaped eyes. "What?"

Natsu's expression intensified slightly. "Attitude, I see." He looked at Malik. "Malik…bring him to me."

Malik nodded as he walked toward Lyon, lifted him up easily, and dragged him toward Natsu. Lyon struggled in Malik's grip as he was dragged. "Hey! Let…go!" He protested. However, Malik refused to listen. He lightly tossed the boy to the ground and he landed in front of Natsu with a grunt.

"Much better," Natsu said, his scowl remaining on his face as he looked down at the boy. "My information tells me that you are roommates with Fullbuster, is that right?"

"Yes," Lyon mumbled inaudibly.

The scowl on Natsu's face deepened as his voice started to rise, "What's that?!"

Lyon looked at Natsu and repeated, only louder, "Yes."

The pinkette once again became calm. "So…if you were roommates, then you helped him escape. Is that it?"

Lyon's eyes widened at the accusation. "I did not! I didn't know what he was doing! He was going crazy, saying that he wanted to get out but-"

Natsu cut him off with a backhand across his face. "FOOL!" Lyon yelped as he hit the floor. "You think I was born yesterday?! So you HELPED him escape!"

Lyon twitched at Natsu's rage. "…N-not exactly."

"You think that LYING is going to SAVE you, boy?!" Natsu yelled.

"I'm not!" Lyon defended himself, tired of this interrogation already.

Natsu snapped his fingers. "Liar…I'll deal with you later. Take him away."

The boys started whispering in fear. "Is he going to that place where no one comes out alive?!" One asked. "No! No! I heard stories!" Another protested. "My brother left and never came back!" Another cried.

Hearing these frightened whispers, Kietsu held up a hand. "Hold up, Natsu."

Natsu glared at Kietsu. "What is it, Kietsu?"

"It could be possible that the boy got out on his own and that Lyon is not lying," Kietsu opinionated, "Besides, what does he have to gain by lying to you? You'd only kill him, so he isn't lying."

"Besides, he didn't 'say' by using his words," Lyon added, "He was freaking out for he was worried."

Natsu glared at Lyon and kicked him in the side, making him yell out in pain. "DON'T talk unless you're spoken to, brat!"

"Instead of being angry and impatient, try listening for once," Kietsu advised.

Natsu calmed down. "Hmph, fine." He looked at Malik. "Take him back to his place."

Malik picked Lyon up and dragged him back to his spot on the bench. Juvia just watched with a worried expression on her face. If Natsu called on her, what would she say?

"Now…Juvia," Natsu said as he stared at her. Juvia tensed as she closed her eyes. She was dreading that this would happen. "If I recall, you were in charge of Fullbuster, correct?"

Juvia nodded. "Yes, sir…"

Natsu raised an eyebrow. "Care to enlighten me?"

"Once I finished running tests on him," she explained, "I took him back to his room. He was looking at the girls' wing and…" She stopped when she saw Natsu smirk. "I had to lead him away quickly," She hurried to finish, "as much as it broke my heart."

Kietsu looked at her. "What? You think he went to hide in the girls' wing?"

Juvia looked down and replied, "His sister…was in there…"

"Ah right," Kietsu said. He had remembered that day when the two were separated. They were inseparable, so it was only understandable that Gray was screaming bloody murder when scientists pulled them apart.

"The poor thing didn't see his sister for nearly a year," Juvia went on, heartbreak imminent in her voice. "And he wanted to see her again…but knowing the rules, I couldn't allow it. So I took him back to his room and locked the door."

"And that was the last time you saw him?" Natsu pressed.

"Right," Juvia affirmed.

"I see," Natsu looked around the room at everyone else, "Can ANYONE share what they saw? How they got out?"

Juvia breathed a sigh of relief. She was thankful that she did not get punished and was able to live another day. However, that did not shake off her uneasiness.

Speaking of uneasiness, no one answered Natsu's request for fear of what he might do. However, this made the pinkette even more impatient. "No one?" He repeated, his voice rising ever so slightly. "ANYONE?!" The boys looked at each other. How can they give him any kind of answer when they barely know anything? They did hear the action taking place, but they never saw anything that could be worth sharing.

Sensing the growing tension, Kietsu spoke up, "Speak up and maybe I will talk to Natsu in taking you boys to the girls' wing to maaaayyybeee have some fun. However, since some of you are too young, I might convince Natsu to give some extra sweets." He crossed his fingers behind his back as he spoke in his sly tone.

Natsu raised his eyes at Kietsu's gesture. What is he planning on doing?

A younger boy with a bed-head style of black hair looked up. He looked no older than the age of 12. "I think I have an idea of what happened," he said bravely.

Natsu looked at the boy. "Subject 214…Romeo. Explain yourself."

Romeo nodded. "I was getting tests…and I heard yelling and punching across the hall. I know each guard had a tazer baton…but one was stolen because I heard sparks going off. That's when the alarms went off."

"And this was how he escaped?" Natsu asked.

Romeo paused for a moment, "I don't know the exact details but I can only guess so."

Natsu nodded as he processed this information. "I see." He looked at everyone else, "You see, you ingrates, this is how it's done. Learn from Romeo, and you won't become a fool like Lyon." He glared at him. Lyon just said nothing as he looked into space.

Romeo looked at Natsu. "So is Kietsu-san right?"

Natsu looked at Kietsu for assurance, "Well…Kietsu?

"What Romeo said is a possibility," Kietsu said with a nod. "Also, I appreciate it and all, but I think you boys should just go back to your rooms, except Romeo." Silent whispers are heard amongst the subjects. "He at least had the guts to talk about it, so he can be treated to something nice." He looks at Natsu and then back at the group. "The rest of you can just go back to imagining what it would be like to live better lives."

Lyon said nothing. He just did not care anymore, and he knew that that life would never come. He was sure that a number of other boys felt the same way.

However, some boys were jealous of Romeo. A boy with sandy-coloured hair, named Eve, sulked as he looked at Romeo. "Lucky guy," he said.

A boy next to him who looked a little older, replied, "You got that right." This was Hibiki.

Natsu looked at a few soldiers that also gathered in the room, a dark and evil look in his eyes. "Soldiers, escort these boys to their rooms." Then he looked at the boys, "And no talking!" The boys stood up and were immediately escorted to their rooms.

As he was escorted back to his room, Lyon closed his eyes. _Good luck, Gray_ , He thought to himself and then opened his eyes.

Natsu looked at Romeo, who was left behind. "Well then, Kietsu, give him his…reward."

Kietsu smirked as he looked at Romeo. "Let's go then." Looking forward to seeing what his reward will be, Romeo followed Kietsu.

* * *

Meanwhile, Minerva walked out of the house with a sigh, her mind replaying the words that were painted in red on the wall:

 _Whatever makes her happy is for the best, but at the same time, I will kill my heart._

What did he mean? Minerva could only think of one thing and one thing only: when she left, he tried to kill himself. That would explain the blood on the walls. This made her feel responsible. However, if Kietsu listened to her and what she had to say, would it make any difference?

She remembered the day they met. They were attending university together before the apocalypse eight years ago, and they were both third-year neuroscience majors. He was so lively and intelligent, and the moment their relationship started, they gelled together. She was trying to fulfill her dream of being a professor. He helped her with her studies and helped her grow as a person. Furthermore, they seemed like the perfect couple.

However, when the couple worked co-op together at Dragon Corporation, that was when things changed. She accidentally stumbled upon something that she was not meant to see, and it made her see things differently: Something that was so gruesome and horrible that it scared her. When she told Kietsu about it, he just waved her off, telling her that it was nothing serious and she should not worry.

But even though he told her not to worry, she could not stop thinking about it. Even when the apocalypse started, she knew that Dragon Corporation was becoming worse. They started to develop a fascist way of thinking, and children and teen-agers were becoming used as experiments. Minerva could not understand why. She needed to do something right for a change. Even when her co-op position turned into a full-time position, she had to make a decision between her dream and her heart.

When she tried to persuade Kietsu to come with her, however, he got angry, thinking that she was abandoning her dreams to become a terrorist. This sparked a major argument between them, and it ended with her leaving him. She felt like he changed and she needed to leave before things became even worse. It was a sacrifice she had to make, in order to fight for a greater cause.

While she would always love Kietsu, she was not sure if she should forgive him for the events that led to their break-up. Men are so fickle, aren't they?

Speaking of men, a male voice broke her out of her reverie, "How did it go?" She looked to her left and saw Sting leaning against the wall, staring into space. Minerva smiled at her best friend. "You weren't kidding about wanting to come here," Sting continued, "it brings back memories…especially of the time Rogue and I met you and Kietsu." He chuckled. "Rogue was so anti-social, but I think even then he liked you, despite your unavailability."

Minerva giggled and then frowned, "Didn't think you would come back for me despite that craziness."

"Yeah well," Sting sighed as he stopped leaning on the wall to look at her, "You're silly for thinking that I would ever leave my sister behind." Since Rogue was his twin brother, he was referring to the fact that Minerva was his sister-in-law. "Are you okay?"

Minerva nodded, "I will be…just guilty that's all. Sometimes I wonder if it was right to come back here."

Sting looked at her. "What do you mean?" Minerva told him about what she saw, and he looked deep in thought. "I see…" He put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You shouldn't worry. You had to make the best decision for you, and Kietsu never realized that. One day, he will see what you've become, and it's not like you haven't changed much. You're still that awesome, bad-ass, and intelligent woman my brother fell in love with. Give it time alright?"

Minerva smiled at his assuring words. "You're right. Well, we've spent enough time here. Let's go home."

Sting took out a tablet and plugged in a few codes. "By the way, sorry for arriving later than usual," he apologized, "I had to pick up my baby." He pressed a button to initialize the program, and a small jet plane appeared in front of them. While he was a hacker, he was also able to cloak transportation and shelter. He smirked at his achievement. "I feel like an Agent of SHIELD!" He exclaimed proudly.

Minerva giggled at the reference. "Come on. Let's get in."

"Sure thing," Sting replied as he walked with her toward the jet.

"I do have a question though," Minerva stated as she strapped herself in. Sting situated himself in the pilot's seat and started up the engine before turning back to her. "You alerted the others for help right?"

"Yeah," Sting replied. "After following you guys, I tried hacking into that hellhole where he held you and Rogue, but there was a firewall blocking me. Besides, I was outnumbered anyway."

"Smart thinking," Minerva remarked. Sting just nodded as he operated the plane for take-off.

* * *

Back at base, Ur tended to Takuma's wounds as she was listening to Kagari's report. "Takuma would have died if Aiden, Sarah, Jellal, Laxus, and Erza hadn't showed up," he finished. Ur just simply nodded, heartbroken because of Cana. This was going to be tough on all of them and their morale, she could feel it. However, this was nothing new, and she knew with the right words and actions, she could give everyone the strength they needed to keep going. After all, that was her duty as leader and founder of Desert Viper.

In the training room down below, Roku punched the various targets in a quick motion - think of one of those training exercises that Oliver Queen did on Arrow.

He was relaxing in the sitting room upstairs, playing cards with a few of the other rebels. Once he heard that the only family that he had left was killed and any possibility of having a niece or nephew vanished alongside her, he went straight toward the training room.

How could this happen? He could not believe that his older sister was killed! He tried not to blame Takuma because the two were best friends, but a part of him did. Takuma was supposed to protect her! Another part of him blamed himself for not being there when he would have. So many thoughts were going through his head - all filled with rage and grief at the loss of his sister.

A boy with red hair walked up to him. "Roku," he spoke.

"What do you want, Dan?!" Roku snapped.

"First of all, you need to calm down," Dan said. "What happened to Cana wasn't your fault. You should know that...neither was it Takuma's."

"You think I don't know that?" Roku questioned when he stopped his training. "I'm not trying not to blame others but that bastard who killed her."

"Are you sure?" Dan asked, unconvinced, "Because I heard differently outside this door."

Roku sighed. His friend had a point. While he was training, he was shouting expletives at Takuma and at himself.

"If you want my advice," Dan spoke again, "channel your anger and focus your energy on wanting to kill Crow, rather than blaming others. Cana won't forgive you if you do that."

Roku looked at Dan. "You...have a point." He sat down, opened a bottle of water and took a sip from it. "I have to get stronger...for Cana's sake."

Dan smiled. "All of us do." He walked toward the storage closet and picked out two kendo sticks, then threw one of the sticks at Roku. "Get up. We're training."

Roku caught the kendo stick and looked at his friend. "Oh are you asking me to beat you?" He smirked competitively.

Dan matched his smirk. "If you can keep up," he remarked back.

Roku got up and got into a fighting stance. "Oh you're asking for it," He shot back as he ran toward his friend and started to clash with him.

In a room upstairs, a red-haired woman was making out with a white-haired woman on her bed. While Laxus was out, his wife Mirajane was dealing with a situation of her own. Mirajane Strauss - now Mirajane Dreyar - worked as a nurse in a hospital and had often worked beside Ur in the base. Right after she finished working on Kagari's injuries, she was suddenly pulled into another room just when she left the operating room. There, she met the hungry smirk of Keria Seishin followed by soft lips against her own.

Now they were on the bed. Keria was on top of Mira, fondling her breasts with one hand and fingering her clit with the other. Mira moaned underneath her, somehow enjoying the other girl's touch. She wondered how Laxus would react, but then again, knowing most of the men in the rebel group, he probably wouldn't mind.

While the two were having sexual fun, a red-haired man with a scar over his eye sat in one of the chairs hearing Laxus explain what happened. Despite the fact that the two were bitter rivals, Kunou Seishin had to listen to this set of news. He clenched his fists and roughly picked Laxus up by the front of his shirt. "And WHY weren't you there to protect her?! Better yet, YOU SHOULD HAVE STOPPED HER!"

Laxus blinked. Why was he blaming him? He narrowed his eyes. "Calm down, Kunou. There's no reason for you to be so worked up."

Kunou clenched his teeth as he punched Laxus across the floor. "And WHY should I?!"

"Easy Kunou," Sarah said as she tried to calm Kunou down. "Laxus wasn't near her at the time. If anything, you should blame me when I was trying to stop her."

Kunou glared at Sarah. "You?"

Erza spoke up, "I am just to blame as she was, same with Roku. She was so adamant on saving Takuma's life." She looked down in sadness. "But now...he's so broken that I'm afraid he won't be the same."

"Yeah well," Kunou crossed his arms, "you're his sister. Deal with it."

Erza sighed. "He needs some time first, so I will eventually."

Laxus rubbed his cheek as he stood up from the floor. "First Bisca and Alzack, now Cana," he trailed off, "who's next?"

Bisca and Alzack were snipers in their group until a couple months ago when they were ambushed during a raid. They fought hard against a group of soldiers from Dragon Corporation and barely survived with many injuries. However, that was not what killed them. After they fought back with everything they had, they were weary and exhausted. Bisca had to use some of her medical knowledge to tend to Alzack's injuries as well as her own, but they were oblivious to a horde of zombies that were stalking them like hyenas or vultures circling their prey. There were reinforcements, but they did not make it time.

Aiden clenched his fists as he thought of the memory - the blood and gore that he, Erza and Sarah had witnessed from a distance as those monsters tore their friends apart. Even after they vanquished the horde, they had to do whatever he could to block out the disgusting and terrible sight. However, even still, the thought of it was enough to give anyone nightmares and the urge to throw up.

Erza trembled as she also thought of the memory. Bisca was one of her best friends, and not once did she have a wink of sleep since she witnessed it. Ur had to give her something to help her sleep every night, but that did not stop her from screaming in the early part of the morning. Covering her mouth, she ran to the bathroom. Sarah ran after her, also feeling the effects.

Aiden glared at Laxus, clenching his teeth as he tried to calm himself down. "Don't...mention...it...again!" He hissed as he gripped his head.

Laxus looked down, realizing what he did. "Sorry," he apologized, "It was the spur of the moment."

Aiden grabbed Laxus by his front. "I'LL GIVE YOU A SPUR OF THE MOMENT!" He was about to lash out, when the rescue group that saved Rogue and Minerva walked in.

"At ease, Aiden!" Cynthia barked as Liam used his strength to pry the two apart. "I will have _no_ in-fighting, is that clear?!"

"It's clear," Laxus replied as he glared at Aiden.

Aiden just looked at Cynthia and then turned to walk off. "I'm going to have a smoke," he grumbled. Kunou just made a noise as he walked off as well.

A man with silver hair and an eye patch walked into the room when he heard the group. "Ah welcome back," He greeted. "What seems to be the problem?"

"Cana is dead," Laxus explained.

"What?!" The man exclaimed in shock. Everyone else showed how shocked they were at the news, all except Cynthia who narrowed her eyes. This was nothing new, as unfortunate as it may have been.

"How?!" Kaneko wanted to know.

"She was shot," Kagari answered as he walked out with Ur.

"And what happened to you?" The man asked Rogue as he started to tend to his wounds.

"Bastards captured Minerva and I, then tortured us for information," Rogue answered. "Then just when we were about to leave, they tried to blow us up." He looked around. "Speaking of which, where is Minerva anyway?"

"Right here," Minerva spoke when she entered the base with Sting.

"Where did you run off to?" Liam asked, confused by Minerva's presence.

"I had to deal with some personal business of my own," Minerva answered as she nodded to Sting.

"You okay?" Raiden asked as he took off his mask, revealing a head of brown hair. He walked over to the fridge to get a cold drink.

"I'm fine," Minerva replied. She looked at Rogue with concern. It was clear that he needed more medical attention than she did.

Cynthia looked at Minerva. "You don't have to tell us what you saw, but for now you all can relax." Minerva nodded. "However, even while we must relax, that does not mean that we can't keep our guard," she continued.

Kaneko nodded, "I agree. I don't know why but...Kietsu may have done a dirty trick."

That was when Ur walked up with Kagari behind her. It was clear that she overheard their discussion. "That boy is definitely a genius, so we must be careful." She looked at a petite girl with blue hair monitoring the computers in the corner of the room. A little girl with long blue hair played with her toys beside her. This was Ayame, Levy's daughter. "Let me know when you see something suspicious, Levy."

"Yes, ma'am…" Levy assured.

Then Ur looked at the rest of the group. "I know the news of Cana is unfortunate and is bringing us down, but we must focus our energy on taking down the enemy. While grieving is okay, the show must go on because Cana would have wanted it this way...same with Bisca, Alzack...and those friends of ours who have lost their lives."

"You're right," Kaneko trailed off while looking into space. She had her own fair share of losses, and she learned to be strong and go forward even if she had to force herself to. "This is war after all." She looked away, hair covering her melancholy eyes. Liam just stared at her.

Ur smiled assuringly. "So have yourselves a good cry, smile for the lost ones, train, and live life. We won't stop until our goal is met. Prove the enemy wrong and know that we are stronger than ever before."

"While you have a point," the silver-haired man said after he finished tending to Rogue's wounds, "it will still take time. Not many of us can smile just like that."

Ur sighed. "That may be true, Gin, but it will still take time. So take the time you need."

Levy looked back at the monitor and went back to her work, ignoring the tears that fell from her eyes. This was going to be difficult, especially since Cana was one of her best friends. However, like what Ur said, the show must go on, right? She wished it would be that simple, but she was not sure how long she would last. If it weren't for her daughter, she would be gone years ago. A small part of her hoped that Ayame's father, Gajeel, would still be alive somewhere.

A blip showed on the radar and she widened her eyes. "U-um, Ur-sensei!"

Ur looked at her. "What is it, Levy?"

"Something is on the radar!"

Ur walked towards her and looked at the radar. The people that were in the room, looked up as well. "Zoom in," she ordered. Levy did so, and there was an outline of a town within a three mile radius. Ur tensed a little. "The ruins of Hargeon," She noted.

"Is it friendly?" Liam asked.

"We don't know," Ur answered. "Liam, Kaneko...get Mirajane. Gin, you're coming with us on this mission. We are going to check it out and take necessary action." Liam and Kaneko nodded as they went off to find Mirajane. Gin looked at Ur and nodded as he went to get his equipment.

Kaneko and Liam walked down the hallway, treading along the linoleum floors, toward their destination. The moaning echoing in the hall was proof enough that Mirajane was in a room in this hallway, toward the left.

When they stopped at the door, Kaneko looked at Liam. "I will be back." Liam nodded as Kaneko knocked on the door. He braced himself and stood a foot away, knowing fully well what Keria would do. He can admit - it was pretty hot to see two or more girls make love to each other, but he would rather not get involved. Their fun is their own. However, he could not help feeling a little jealous.

After a moment, the door was answered and Keria, still naked, flashed a grin. "Kaneko! Join the fun!" She tried to drag her inside, but Kaneko stopped her.

"We need Mirajane," She told her. "Levy found a blip on the radar, so we're going on a recon mission to check it out."

Keria was disappointed, "Oh." Then she flashed another grin. "I will give up Mira, but you will let me taste you whenever you come back."

Kaneko sighed as she looked at Liam who looked like his ears were perked. Then she looked at Keria, "Fine, we get a deal. Also...there is something we need to tell you."

From the sadness and seriousness in Kaneko's tone, Keria frowned. "What's wrong?" Behind her, Mirajane was getting dressed but stopped when she heard Kaneko's voice.

Kaneko took a moment to think about how she would say this. "Takuma, Kagari and Cana returned from their raid-"

Keria's eyes immediately showed excitement. "Cana?! Where is she?! She promised that she would join me and Mira!"

The frown never left Kaneko's face. "That's the thing... She won't deliver her promise."

"What do you mean? Is she okay?" Keria asked with slight panic.

Kaneko closed her eyes. She had to say this outright, and it wasn't going to be easy. "She's...dead..."

Keria's eyes widened. These were the words she was dreading. "NOOOOO!" She screamed as she hugged Kaneko in tears. Kaneko hugged her back and soothed her as she cried loudly. Mira gasped as her eyes went wide. Why were they losing so many people?! It wasn't fair!

"I'm sorry, Keria," Kaneko sobbed as she held her.

"How?! What happened?!" Keria cried.

"They were ambushed by the enemy. Apparently she was pregnant..."

This made Keria cry even harder. Mira could not stand any more. She had to sit down before she could faint. Liam just sighed as he heard the girls cry. He had to look around the corner to watch the heart-breaking sight. If anything, he wished he would hug and comfort them both, but Keria was naked and also he felt that the girls would be better left in their moment. He also knew what Kunou would do if he got involved with his adoptive sister. So he just looked away as he continued to listen.

After a few moments of crying, Kaneko stopped hugging Keria and looked at her. "Are you going to be okay?"

Keria wiped her tears away. "Just...go."

Kaneko understood by the tone of Keria's voice that she wanted to be left alone. She looked in the room. "Mira?"

Mirajane walked outside, wearing pink blouse with all buttons but the top one were done up and white capri pants. Casual white shoes and white ankle socks were on her feet. A leather holster carrying a .45 caliber pistol was around her waist. She looked at both girls with her tear-stained face to show that she was also breaking down and nodded.

"Let's go then," Kaneko suggested. "Liam's waiting."

"That's fine," Mira replied. She looked at Keria. "We'll be back and then we can do something to help us grieve." Keria just nodded without saying anything. With nothing else said, Keria, Mirajane and Liam walked away and exited the camouflaged building in a small plane, which was also camouflaged thanks to Sting's skills.

* * *

A half-mile away from the Dragon Corporation is a wooded region lined with dead trees and carpeted with dead leaves. The only sounds that were heard were the crunch of leaves and panicked breathing as a boy in his early teens ran through the trees. Clutched tightly in his hands, was a tazer baton that he stole from one of the guards at the facility. His throat was burning, his legs were aching, his side felt like it was about to split apart...but he kept running. After all, he knew that they were hot on his trail, and the last thing he wanted to do was go back to that place.

This was Gray Fullbuster, age 14, also known as Subject 209. When he was only nine years old, Zeref told his parents that Gray and his little sister, Luna were selected for a special program that not only would supply the Fullbuster family with the needs to survive, but also the two would become heroes along with the rest of the younger generation.

At first, their father, Silver, was strongly against it. However, food was running out and the taxes were high, so there was no other choice.

However, when Gray and Luna arrived, they were immediately put through the first test, not knowing that everything that was told to their family was a lie until after the tests. Who knows what really happened to their family? One thing was for sure; throughout these tests, they saw death all around them. It was at that moment that Gray knew...these people were monsters.

Even still, throughout all of those tests, Gray fiercely protected his sister and paid the ultimate price. There was a scar across his left eye, which was covered in a bandage. But that was nothing. The worst part was that he could no longer speak. Could it be the trauma that affected both children? Or could it be the drugs? Or maybe it could have been that creature that he had to fight off in the second test? Either way, he could not stand to be at that place any longer. He had not seen his sister in two years, and he wanted to get her out of there, but first he needed help.

He only just left the wooded area when he set foot in the ruins of Hargeon. Maybe one of these buildings could provide shelter. He continued to run into the town, but due to the fact that his legs felt like weights and the thoughts in his mind were running wild, he tripped on curb and landed on the eroded pavement. Sharp pain was inflicted when he skinned his knee, and he hissed in pain as he caught the rest of his fall. The concrete also skinned his hands but the pain did not matter any more...

...At least not until headlights from the planes above made him freeze. He quickly rolled out of sight, into an alleyway between two nearby buildings. His breath caught in his throat as he waited for the planes to pass. The baton lay on the sidewalk and he hoped that it would not be picked up. _Go away,_ He prayed, _go away!_

Eventually, the planes left and the coast was clear. However, Gray could not catch a break. A foul stench was in the air and groaning was heard. This is bad! He did not know what was worse - Dragon Corporation...or _these things_! He rolled back to his baton, picking it up and then as fast as he could, ignoring the pain in his knee. The unseen beasts seemed to surround him from all sides, and he wanted to scream. He could feel movement behind him, and he knew that he was being chased.

Quickly, he dove under a bench and held the baton in front of him as he waited. Cold sweat dripped down his forehead as he prayed for the zombies to disappear.

Five minutes of dreadful silence had passed, and thinking that the coast was clear, he started to slip out from under the bench. Then a swipe was made and he quickly got back to his hiding place. He fought with all his might against the rotting hands that tried to grab him, hitting them frantically. The cold dead eyes of the monsters were filled with blood lust as they persevered to grab their prey.

Just when Gray realized that he was doomed, shots were fired and the monsters screeched as they were torn apart by the bullets. Then silence followed, and he took a few shaky breaths as he waited.

Footsteps were heard and Gray immediately shut his eyes tightly. He just wanted to escape from this nightmare and be safe for once. Red flags were going off when he saw a person's feet in front of his face, and a slight shadow squatting.

"Are you okay, young one?"

* * *

And that's it! I know it's a little long, but I hope it's enjoyable. You will see action next chapter, so I will see you then! Let me know what you think in the meantime.


	4. Warm Protection

***starts getting surrounded by a mob***

 **Alright! Alright! I get it! I haven't updated in over a month! I've been busy and also with writer's block, so you can't really blame me. Also, action-packed chapters like this one take time! *the mob nods in understanding* Whew...**

 **Anyway! Here's chapter 4. Hope you enjoy!**

 **Also, special thanks to Aiden Hinote for your help with Malik and Liam's fight. I could never have finished this chapter without you. And thanks to Gil for taking time out from your busy schedule to beta my story as well.**

 **With that said, ROLL IT!**

* * *

Chapter 4 - Warm Protection

 **Thirty Minutes Ago**

Ur ran toward Hargeon with her group in tow. She had a horrible feeling that this may not end well, especially how the world is crawling with zombies. With this mind, she was prepared to fight. Mirajane had her gun in her hand while Kaneko and Gin had their blades ready. Being a man with superhuman strength, Liam did not have a need for weapons.

The four arrived in Hargeon when sure enough, they encountered the zombies crowded around a bench. There was one thing that Ur thought of when she saw the scene: they were attacking a civilian! She nodded toward her group and they ran toward the scene. Liam ripped a street sign off the side of the street and swung at a zombie's head, ripping it clean off.

"Give him a bartender outfit and sunglasses," Kaneko quipped as she slashed at the zombies with her katana.

Liam rolled his eyes. "Nice timing to make such jokes," he remarked as he beheaded another zombie.

Kaneko just frowned. "I have my reasons," she replied as she continued to attack with flawless and fluid motions.

Liam just nodded in response. He could not blame her for trying to make light of a serious situation. He knew that she was a normal girl with a normal life, and then everything changed. He guessed that that was the same for everyone still alive in this world...but he was an exception.

Not once did Liam think himself as normal. His super strength proved that point. Being an avid comic book fan, he had dreamed of having super powers, but how he got them was far from pleasant. Dragon Corporation was running tests on a serum that they created to develop the perfect super soldier. They needed a group of subjects to test the serum on, and Liam was one of those subjects. He was actually a prototype.

However, how he escaped was a blur to him. Even still, he had a feeling it would not go very well for the scientists that experimented on him.

Before the tests, he was anti-social and kept to himself ever since his mother died. Then when he met Kaneko, his world brightened up a bit. Initially, she had a really bad attitude to others, but she saved him in more ways than one. Even though they were not officially in a relationship yet, he hoped that she would one day return his feelings.

Gin slashed down the numerous zombies with his scythe, a weapon that no one would even think of using. He had to get to that civilian before they could harm him, and he prayed that that civilian would hang on just a little longer. A zombie approached him from behind, but before it could slash at him, Ur shot it in the head. Gin turned to face her. "Thanks for the save, Ur-san!" He called out.

Ur continued to fire at the zombies that were approaching her. "Just get to that civilian!" She ordered.

Gin nodded and ran toward the bench, slicing zombies in half when they got in his way. Since there was a large group, he looked up to Mirajane who was running up from the other side. "Care to give me a hand, miss?" He asked Mira.

"Already on it!" Mira exclaimed as she continued to shoot zombies down as she ran.

Gin growled as he continued to slash at the zombies. There were too many, and it was annoying him to no end. He hoped that Mira's help will make things a little easier.

Mira looked at a zombie that was reaching under the bench. "Oh no you don't!" She cried as she shot the zombie several times in the head, spraying the blood-like substance in the process, until it fell. She nodded to Gin to give him the "all clear" signal, and he ran toward the bench. "I will cover your back," Mira suggested as she noticed a few more zombies approaching.

Gin nodded as he bent over to see the civilian under the bench. It was a young boy who looked like he was in his early teens. Strands of raven-black hair nearly covered his one good eye, but Gin could still tell that he was frightened. Patches of dirt clung to the boy's body and a white bandage covered his right eye.

Gin knelt in front of the boy and held out a hand. "Are you alright, young one?"

Gray looked up at his rescuer and shuffled away quickly, his breaths rapid. He was not sure if this man worked for Dragon Corporation, but when he looked at what was in the man's other hand, his body shook from anxiety. This stranger had a weapon on him, so he _had_ to have worked for Dragon Corporation. The boy clutched the baton tightly in his hands as he looked at Gin.

Gin frowned at the boy's fear. He could tell that his weapon frightened him greatly so he carefully put it down. "It's alright," he assured with a smile as he pulled back slightly. "I won't hurt you. The bad guys are gone."

Gray's breathing slowed down slightly as he looked at the older man. Even though he was unsure what his rescuer's intentions were, he knew that the zombies were no longer attacking because of him and that other voice he heard. However, his body still refused to move.

The smile never left Gin's face as he shuffled back a bit. "Tell you what," he suggested, "I will move back and give you space so you can come out when you're ready." Gray looked at him in confusion. Gin lifted his hands up. "I promise with everything I have that I won't hurt you. I want to protect you, and I understand that you don't trust me right now. So take your time, alright?"

Gray swallowed a nervous lump in his throat. There was a hint of kindness in the man's voice, and as he processed his words, he was convinced that this man might have earned his trust...to a small extent of course.

When he carefully got out from under the bench, his arm started to ache and sting. He hissed with pain as he moved his arm. Uh oh...what now? He looked at his arm to see what the problem was, and to his horror, he could see four scratch marks. Blood oozed from the wound, and the skin that surrounded it was a greyish-blue colour. He wanted to scream...despite his inability to talk. How could he have not noticed?! He was probably too busy to fight off the zombies' attacks to notice the wound in the first place, but when was he scratched? Then he remembered: when he thought the coast was clear not too long ago, he was scratched by a zombie that was right there. How could he be so stupid?!

A wave of dizziness swept over him as he collapsed to the ground, clutching his arm. He could not breathe as tears streamed down his cheeks. Even though he was not sure of the symptoms of the virus, he knew enough about the legend from that popular television show that his father used to watch. He never watched it himself - at least he did not remember watching it - but his father would talk about it a lot and compare the events happening in the real world to those in the show. Will that happen to him? Will he _become_ a zombie due to his carelessness?

He thought of Luna, who was still cooped up in that place. He did not want to lose himself to this horrible disease that has plagued humanity for years. _HELP!_ He screamed in his mind, hoping that the man that saved him would save him again. _I don't want to be one of those monsters. HELP!_

Gin's eyes widened when he saw the scratches. _This isn't good._ He reached into his bag and took a needle syringe, filled with a clear yellow liquid. It was a medicine that Ur concocted that would temporarily block the effects of the virus. It was not the cure, but it was a safety measure until the real thing was found - an adrenaline drug of sorts.

He quickly removed the cap and stabbed the needle into the boy's shoulder, hoping that the drug will work. As Mira was fighting the zombies, she saw Gin do this out of the corner of her eye. "Don't tell me they got him!" She yelled in shock.

Gin sweated as he removed the needle. "I just applied the adrenaline drug," he explained, shaking a little as he waited for the drug's effects to set in. He lost enough patients, and he did not want to lose another.

To his relief, Gray's symptoms stabled and Gin sighed. Now, it is a matter of time before they can fly back to the base.

Mira finished the last zombie in the area and looked at Gin. "How is he?"

"He's good for now," Gin said as he stood up, wiping the sweat off his brow. "Now he should rest until we get back to base."

Mira walked toward Gray. "I need to check something first before we head back." She took out a device from her holster. It was something that all rebels carried just in case they would encounter property from Dragon Corporation. She turned it on as she pointed it toward Gray, and binary numbers showed up on the screen as it scanned the boy.

Gin narrowed his eyes. He did not like this procedure. Was the point of their group to save all humanity and fight the evil corporation that oppressed them? Then again, he knew that all staff and subjects were tagged just in case. He silently cursed at the Dragneel brothers for being one step ahead of them.

The device beeped twice, and Gin raised an eyebrow. "It's as I thought," Mira said as she looked at the screen. "Gray Fullbuster, age 13, birthday May 30, 2043," she read from the screen. It is currently April 28, 2057 by the way.

"Subject?" Gin guessed. This was becoming even more annoying.

Mira nodded as she put the device away. "And worse, it's a runaway."

Gin looked at her. "Weren't Takuma-kun and Kagari-kun runaways?"

Mira looked at him. "They were rescues," she corrected. "I used to work for Dragon Corporation and it's very difficult to escape from there - nearly impossible even..."

Gin nodded as he understood her. He remembered the story of when Ur used her wits as a former employee to save Kagari and Takuma from any further torture. Even then, from what he gathered, it was very difficult for her to escape with the boys. Using their skills, they were able to fight back. Then while they were in hiding, they managed to remove the tags and covered their tracks. So if that was the case, then wouldn't Gray go through the same thing? "Then we should get out of here quickly before-"

He stopped immediately when he heard Kaneko and Liam's voices as they ran up to them. "Gin! Mira!" Liam shouted. From the same sounds of their voices, he could tell that the group was in danger.

"We've got company!" Kaneko shouted.

Gin picked Gray up and turned to Mira. "Quickly, take Gray out of here and run," he ordered. Mira took Gray in her arms. "We will cover you," he finished, "Go!" Mira nodded as she ran toward the camouflaged plane. Gin picked up his scythe and prepared to fight.

However, before Kaneko and Liam could regroup with Gin, there was a loud explosion that separated them from him. Watching this, the silver-hair decided to run toward Mira. He felt that she needed him more, and he knew in his heart that Liam and Kaneko got this.

"Not again!" Liam exclaimed as he tackled Kaneko away from the blast. This time, he hissed in pain when the blast got him in the back.

"Liam!" Kaneko exclaimed, worried about her friend.

Liam smiled painfully. "I'm fine...just a scratch." He got up and helped her up.

Kaneko looked around, her eyes and ears open for any other ambush. Her ears picked up movement coming up toward the west. She looked at Liam and shouted, "Incoming!"

Liam turned around and caught the punch of whoever attacked him. When he skidded along the ground, he knew that this person was just as strong as he was if not stronger. "Hello again..." He winced as he faced forward. Malik narrowed his eyes and then started to twist Liam's wrists. "Not this time!" He head-butted Malik, forcing him to let go.

Malik grunted as he staggered back. "You got lucky," he bluntly remarked as he rubbed his forehead, "especially since you survived that explosion caused by Kietsu."

Liam cracked his knuckles as he got into a fighting stance. "Luck has nothing to do with it," he replied. "I just have teammates that are more alert than I am."

"Yeah well your friends won't be able to save you THIS time!" Malik yelled as he ran toward the smaller man and punched him. The raven dodged it and kneed Malik's stomach, which his opponent blocked with his knee. Then Malik countered with an elbow strike against his opponent's jaw. The resistance fighter grunted a bit as he staggered back. Malik ran toward his off-balanced opponent and went to clothesline, but Liam ducked and ran behind his adversary.

When the silver-hair turned around, he was met with a large swing of a metal street sign, which he just narrowly blocked. Liam quickly jabbed the sign into Malik's face, but grabbed the sign and clenched his teeth as he tried to halt the sign. The raven-head grunted as he tried to breach Malik's strength.

The slightly larger man smirked a little. "You may be strong, but," he started to bend the pole much to Liam's slight surprise, "I am stronger!" He continued to bend the pole as he slowly walked toward his opponent. Liam clenched his teeth as he struggled against Malik's overbearing strength. He had to do something.

Malik shoved the street post down towards the ground, then stomped on it. While the rebel was holding onto metal object, the other man's actions caused him to stumble forward. This gave Malik the opening to kick his rival hard in the face, causing him to hit the ground with a grunt. "Come now, little brother," The silver-hair taunted as he walked forward, "do you truly think you can beat me in fist-to-fist combat? You should have brought a gun!" He started to punch Liam's repeatedly.

Through his opponent's vicious attacks, Liam quickly held his hands up to his face as he blocked other man's punches. Yes, it was true that this man was his older brother, as they were part of the same program. However, once they were free to live their lives, Liam went one way and Malik went the other. The raven did agree on one thing: Malik always had the better fighting experience.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kaneko was having the battle of her life. When she noticed that Liam was having a difficult time with his opponent, she rushed in to help. However, she was attacked from behind by a blade. Sure enough, she reached behind her to block the attack.

When she looked behind her, she noticed a mysterious figure staring back at her. This figure was wearing a crimson-black leather suit that hugged her figure and curves. A deep purple mask covered half her face, and her hair was covered in black cloth. All what Kaneko could see was the woman's steely green eyes peering back at her. This must be one of Natsu's assassins, and Kaneko silently cursed herself for her luck.

A piercing amount of pain shook her out of her thoughts, and she quickly jumped back. She held her side that held a bleeding wound. _God damn it!_ She cursed herself for hesitating. Then she looked ahead at the woman who attacked her.

She had a kunai in her left hand, which dripped in Kaneko's blood, and her katana in her right. This might be more troublesome than the rebel thought. Kaneko quickly got into a fighting stance. "I will never let you get me again," she growled.

Without a word, the masked woman dashed toward her opponent and attacked in a curving downward slash. Kaneko quickly jumped back to avoid it. The masked woman followed up with a sideways swoop of her katana. Kaneko pointed her sword upwards and brought her elbow back, blocking the attack effortless. The woman pressed in as she tried to breach the other's defences, but the rebel refused to give in. She spun around and kicked the masked woman's ribs, forcing her to stagger back.

The woman in black wasted little time to push off the ground for another series of vicious yet fluid strikes, all of which Kaneko blocked. However, the raven started to have trouble blocking the high slashes, and her cheek was cut. This wasn't good. Once the masked woman stabbed at Kaneko's face, the rebel sidestepped the stab. However, she was met with a stab from the woman's kunai.

* * *

* _To Liam and Malik's fight*_

During his tormented battle, Liam wondered where Kaneko was. However, when he heard metal clashing with metal, he realized that this was his own battle to fight. It worked perfectly for this was a battle between two brothers with a similar mutation. He clenched his teeth as he kicked Malik's stomach hard. "Shut UP!" He yelled as he did so. Malik staggered back a little. This gave Liam enough time to stand up.

As Malik staggered, he noticed that he stepped on something. He looked down at a metal trash-can lid. Smirking, he kicked up the lid and caught it. Then he threw it at Liam, aiming for his throat.

The target caught the lid and looked up with a smile. "You know me so well." This was in reference to the comics they would read together as kids. In fact, the last happy memory he had was watching Captain America: Winter Soldier with his brother. Afterwards, the two would play Captain America with each other: Liam would be Bucky and Malik would be the Cap himself.

However, as much as he hated to admit it, those days were probably gone. After all, Malik is the enemy now. He ran toward his brother, going for a clothesline.

Malik ducked under the clothesline, quickly turned around and grabbed Liam's arm. His brother was met with a countering clothesline. Another thing that these brothers enjoyed was wrestling each other. They took inspiration from some of the old wrestling shows like those in the WWF. At first, they never really hurt each other, but now it was time to make those moves hurt.

Liam grunted loudly as he hit the ground. However, when Malik clotheslined him, he hooked his leg onto the older man's. So when he went down, he twisted his body slightly to make Malik fall as well. However, his legs continued to entangle with the other's. He quickly shifted into a figure-four leg-lock, glaring at Malik as he did so. "You...should have...went with me," he growled in a threatening tone.

As painful as the lock was to Malik, he knew how to counter it. He twisted his body around, making Liam's body turn with him. This took the pressure off of his legs and reverted it to Liam's. "You...should have STAYED!"

Liam screamed as he felt the pressure. This was agonizing torture, and he had to get out of this the best way he knew how. He let go of Malik's legs and two rolled away from each other. Then the rebel looked around, hoping to see something he could grab onto. When his eyes hit the garbage can, he tried to reach for it.

Once Malik was away enough, he grabbed the street sign that Liam used earlier and smashed his brother's ribs with it three times. The rebel screamed in pain as he was being struck. The soldier tossed the street sign away and walked toward the garbage can Liam was trying to grab. He lifted it up and dumped trash over his younger brother's head. Liam, on the other hand, paid no mind to the trash.

However, when Malik was about to slam the can on top of his head, he quickly punched through the can and grabbed it. After ripping it out of Malik's grip, Liam proceeded to smash his rival's groin hard with it, then followed it up with a kick into Malik's ribs.

As his brother staggered back, Liam glared at Malik and prepared for more. "I was saved...unlike you. Also, unlike you, I have a conscious. Where is YOURS, brother?!" He tackled Malik down all his strength. However, the soldier quickly used Liam's size and strength against him as he monkey-threw him. Liam landed on the ground with a grunt.

* * *

* _To Kaneko and the woman's fight*_

Blood dripped to the ground as Kaneko panted. In a last ditch effort to avoid the other woman's stab, she grabbed her opponent's wrist. Just before the mercenary was about to cut off Kaneko's hand with her katana, the swordswoman quickly turned her around twisted her wrist, earning a silent wince from the other woman.

"I have questions for you," Kaneko stated as she pointed her blade to the centre of the other woman's back. "First off, who are you? Second, what makes you think you can take that boy back?"

All what the other woman could say was, "Beat it out of me." With that, she stabbed at Kaneko's knee with her sword.

The rebel quickly noticed this and shoved her adversary back. Then she jumped back, making distance between herself and the other. She was getting frustrated with these cheap attacks. Then again, this woman worked for Natsu after all. The wound in her side didn't help much either. She reached into her vest pocket.

However, she did not have the time to take out what she needed to as she was met with a volley of lunges from the enemy. Caught off guard, she twisted her arms to and fro as she tried to stave off the aggressive stabs. The woman in crimson refused to slow down as she continuously attacked, and Kaneko could feel that she was slowing down slightly. The cuts she was getting on her shoulders and arms were the proofs of that.

Shifting her eyes around, she looked at her surroundings. Dead vegetation, broken down buildings, split telephone poles, and dusty cars surrounded both of them from all sides. Every so often, she looked at her opponent as she continued to block the never-ending strikes. Using her upper body strength, she hoisted herself from the ground and flipped back on her hands. Then she shoved off the ground and landed back on her feet.

The woman pursued her, but after Kaneko flipped one more time, she took out a device and pressed the button on it. This created a flash which temporarily blinded the masked woman.

Using this as a distraction, Kaneko painfully flipped behind a nearby car so she could rethink her strategy. She reached into her pocket and brought out what she was going for a while ago - a hemostatic spray. After removing the cap, she sprayed on her wounds. The airborne liquid stung, but she was too tough to let a tiny spray affect her.

As the liquid clotted her blood, she reached into her other pocket to take out a lighter. What could she use this for? She studied the car carefully as she removed the dust, coughing a little as she did so. It was a Honda Civic, dating around 2015. Since she was a minor in geosciences, she knew that gasoline had a pretty short half life of 5 days. However, the shelf life of gasoline was only good for a year. Knowing these questions and the fact that this car didn't seem to be used in a while, that idea was out of the window.

What else was there? She had to think quickly for the blindness her opponent was facing could ware off any minute. Oil! She ducked underneath the car to find the transmission cord. Perhaps this could be a better idea. It seemed to make more sense...that is, if there was oil still inside. She severed the cord, hoping for a miracle. Then she widened her eyes.

* * *

 _*To Liam and Malik's fight*_

Malik stood up. Liam was a distance away from him, wincing at the pains that he had received thanks to his brother's attacks and the explosion he protected Kaneko from earlier.

"My conscious is clear," The muscular man stated as Liam looked up at him, "I was taken in by Kietsu, and I will help by any means necessary to do what is RIGHT! You rebels are just acting out like children. Yes, Zeref and Natsu may not have the right mind set or sanity, but they're still doing their job that was passed down to them by their father. Igneel followed the LAWS of the government while _your_ group consists of nothing but LAWLESS TEENAGERS trying to act out against daddy!"

"Lawless teenagers, huh?" Liam repeated as he slowly stood up from the ground. "You're not looking at the big picture. We want change. You should KNOW of the oppressions the Dragneel brothers put on people. They KILLED, they abducted CHILDREN and put them through life-threatening exercises and experiments! We're supposed to survive, but instead, they're doing more harm than good! Hell! People are publicly executed just for standing up for what they BELIEVE IN!

"People who dare stop their PROGRESS!" Malik finished, walking toward Liam. "They are the only ones in the world right now that has the equipment to STOP this virus and zombies! No one else can, especially not your leader, Ur!" He was now a couple feet away. "You see oppression; I see the law making sure things doesn't get worse. We at Dragon Corporation are trying to do the best we CAN to stop the most important thing in this world that everyone is worried about right now! That is the zombies and the virus that's running rampant!"

Liam walked toward his brother as he clenched his fists. He wanted nothing more than to knock sense into the older man. How could he act so brainwashed? "Ur has other ways to stop this virus," he argued. "She has the equipment which she stole from your assholes of employers. So you know what?! Enough is enough, Malik! People are living in fear and it's up to US to take back the rights that are rightfully theirs!"

"YOU'RE NOTHING BUT THIEVES, COWARDS AND THE LAWLESS!" Malik shouted, "NOTHING MORE, NOTHING LESS! Zeref and Natsu already know about her having their equipment, but it is not ENOUGH! Hell! She's not smart enough, not like Kietsu anyway! But you know what? You're right. Enough is enough! You rule breakers think you can do what you want because in reality? You can't!" He took a gun he had hidden and pulled the trigger to shoot his younger brother in the kneecaps.

However, just before he can pull the trigger, a shot was fired at Malik's gun, forcing him to disarm the gun.

* * *

* _to Kaneko and the masked woman*_

The masked woman looked around. "I know you're still around somewhere," she said coldly with both weapons ready.

This was Kaneko's signal to stand up from her hiding place. She did so, but her sword was nowhere in her hand. Instead, she had both arms up. "Here I am...and I surrender," she replied.

The masked woman quickly threw her kunai, aiming for the rebel's head. This gave the raven some opportunity duck but also toss the now lit lighter on the ground underneath the car. Due to the fact that there was now a puddle of oil underneath the car, the woman knew what was coming. She realized how close she was as well.

Kaneko rolled away from the car seconds before it exploded into flames, knocking the masked woman back with a yell. She went undercover into the ruins of a house next to the car and watched as flames danced in clusters around the area.

The masked woman was on the ground, clothes tattered and skin underneath the fabric burned. The stench of burning rubber and oil filled the area as smoke enshrouded the place like a black fog. Kaneko's hiding place only had a few blotches of soot and was damaged from the explosion, but it proved to be an excellent shelter for the swordswoman.

Kaneko stood up and walked toward the woman, who was stirring. "I'm not going to lie," she remarked, "but you're a good fighter. However, you're not smart enough to even be a match for me."

"Bitch," the felled woman hissed as she turned over on her stomach to lift herself up.

"You're probably jealous," Kaneko quipped with a smirk. Then she frowned and put her sword at the other's throat. "Now you have questions to answer...who are you and what makes you think you can take that boy back?"

The woman discretely pressed a button on her belt. "I have a question for you...what makes you think you can escape Natsu's eyesight? You're all pawns, game pieces for him to play with."

"And so are you!" Kaneko snapped.

"Ah, but see...I live to serve Natsu...but I will tell you this. The answer to your second question?" A looming shadow hovered over Kaneko's head, making her look around in confusion. This shadow seemed to be the shape of a small plane. "Gray could be the key to winning this war on disease and the undead." She quickly rolled away, using the rest of her strength as machine guns were fired at Kaneko from the air.

* * *

* _to Liam*_

Liam turned around, wondering where the gunshot was coming from. There could be two options: Mirajane or Ur. Since he saw Mirajane running while carrying Gray, only one answer remained.

"I'm sorry, did you just say I wasn't smart enough?" Ur asked as she walked up beside Liam. "Did you forget that my knowledge came from Igneel himself?"

"Ur!" Liam shouted gratefully.

Ur shot two more times at Malik, hitting him in both shoulders. "You are sadly mistaken in all areas, Malik. Perhaps there are some lessons you should learn as you're quite grasping the big picture yet."

She took out a dagger and was about to throw it, her alerted senses heard something coming and quickly stepped back. However, she could not completely evade the dagger because her arm was grazed. "Tch," she looked up at who threw the dagger.

Riza was several feet away from Malik, who was bleeding and clearly in pain but fighting through his injuries. "Igneel is dead," she stated, "So any knowledge learned from him would be pointless anyways. After all, the virus has changed." The brunette walked toward Malik with her arms crossed. "You're annoying as always, Ur."

"Riza...I didn't need your help," Malik said as he picked up his gun that he dropped and then holstered it.

"Instead of following through with the mission, you are wasting time with your baby brother so I was sent to get you. Besides, the old hag is more experienced than you." Ur scoffed at the comment. Old hag? She didn't look a day over 30. Riza glared at the rebel leader and Liam in case they ever tried to do do something.

"Experience doesn't always matter," Malik pointed out, "they can be beaten by the unskilled or decently skilled." He started to walk away. "Let's go."

While Riza followed the man, Ur called out to them, "You got lucky this time, Malik and Riza. However, don't forget who taught Natsu in the ways of fighting." She smirked. "I know little Natsu inside and out. That way, I know he can be stopped."

"Aren't you behind the times?" Riza insulted.

Ur frowned, not knowing what the younger woman meant. Then all of a sudden, her side was slashed and blood splashed out of her.

Liam's eyes widened in shock. How? How did this happen? "Ur!" He shouted.

Ur was in shock as well. How could she not see it coming? She dropped to a knee as she gasped. The cut was fairly deep, but it grazed her stomach. However, she knew that she had to do something quickly before she bled out. She covered her wound to prevent anymore blood from spilling.

"Are you alright?" Liam asked as he helped her up.

"I'm fine..." She trailed off, "But who did that?"

Liam looked up at the new attacker. He saw a woman with black spandex in front of Malik and Riza. A painted, ivory theatre mask completely covered her face. The paint job on this mask was fairly simple - black eyebrows, pursed red lips, bright green eyes.

Riza shook her head and turned away, "someone who knows you rather well." She walked away to follow Malik out of sight. "Take care of them quickly."

The masked woman looked at the two, and something about her made Liam shudder out of the creepy stare - probably due to the mask. "I have better things in mind," the woman spoke in a deeper voice, which Ur could tell was disguised due to the fact that it sounded electronic.

Despite being fatigued and injured from his fight, Liam had to fight back with everything he had. He knew that Ur would think the same thing, but she had a deep wound on her side. If she fought back, then she would aggravate it further to point of her bleeding out. That was not a risk Liam was willing to take. So the two braced themselves for the next attack their new opponent would do.

The woman took out something and rolled it toward both of them. When Ur looked down, she noticed a silver canister. She narrowed her eyes as she knew what it was, then looked back at the masked woman who turned her back. Instantly, the canister exploded into a flash of light, which made the two stagger back in blindness.

* * *

Meanwhile, Mirajane was running through the damaged city. Gray was out of it and in her arms as she ran, and she glanced down at him to see if he was alright. So far, he had barely stirred in her arms. It would not be long now before she would finally reach the plane and get him out of this hellhole area.

Gin ran about a half-mile behind her, scythe ready in case anyone were to attacked them. However, he was still concerned about who might attack her. He quickly picked up the pace, hoping that he would catch up to her before any enemy would.

With one hand, Mira managed to take out a keypad from her waist pack and started to plug in the numbers to deactivate the camouflage on the plane. Even though she was not a good hacker, Sting taught her how to do certain things. It actually proved to be quite handy, just like now.

However, just before she could finish plugging in the code, she was blind-sided by a baton taser, which sent volts through her body. She screamed as her body went numb and fell to the ground, letting Gray go.

Through her blurry vision, she could tell that someone kneeled next to her and picked up Gray. "You're not going anywhere...Mira-san," a voice spoke up. The white-hair girl could only guess that the voice belonged to the one who knelt beside her. She could only shudder at the sound of the man's voice. However, when she saw that Gray was now once again in the hands of the enemy, every ounce of fear she had in her body was focused toward the precious cargo she was tasked to protect.

* * *

 **So there you have it! A triple-threat of cliffhangers! My greatest weapon! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA *lightning strikes* Anyway, I'd appreciate it if you give me your feedback after you read. It really helps. See you next time!**


	5. The Viper Code

**And finally I bring you guys the next chapter of The Voiceless! I had less trouble working on this chapter than I did the previous one, but I was finally able to get the chapter done. I do have to warn you that there is a non-consensual moment in one of the flashbacks.**

 **Shout out to HarbingerofFire for the idea pertaining to Gin.**

 **I don't own any of the characters here other than my own, Kaneko Aikawa, so enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 5: The Viper Code

 _*to Liam and Ur*_

It took a while for them to regain their sight, but when they came to, Liam and Ur were on the ground. The affect of the flash bomb may have thrown them off balance, but at least they received no further damage.

Liam pulled himself up with a grunt and rubbed the back of his neck. He winced a little as he moved, his back and ribs being the areas that were the most painful. He cursed under his breath at his brother and vowed to get him back one of these days. When his cursing was finished, he softened his eyes. They may be different people, but Malik was still his brother. Maybe "getting him back" held another meaning. For now, they were enemies, and Liam was smart enough to understand that...that is, until he knocked sense into his older brother.

He looked at Ur who carefully turned on her side, the effects of her wound imminent in her eyes. "You alright, Ur-sensei?" He asked.

"I'm fine," his leader answered painfully as she searched for her hemostatic spray. That is, if it was still on her.

Liam quickly took off his jacket. "Here," he said as he wrapped the garment securely but comfortably around her side. "This should be enough to last you."

"Thank you, Liam," Ur said gratefully. "Can you do me one more favour?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Call for back-up," she requested. "I also have a feeling that Kaneko, Gin and Mira may be in trouble."

Liam narrowed his eyes. He did hear some explosions during his fight, but he was too focused on his opponent to worry about Kaneko. Then again, she was tough and was more than capable of looking after herself. Even still, unlike him, she was human. So he hoped that in his heart, she survived her battle.

"Liam," Ur spoke again.

"Sorry," he quickly got out his communication device to check if it still worked. Thankfully, even though the device was slightly damaged due to the explosion, it still worked. He turned it on and brought it to his lips. "This is code name Deejay requesting back-up. We are in the ruins of Hargeon. Come quickly."

While Liam was calling for back-up, Ur found her hemostatic spray and was spraying it over the wound in her side. Her eyes winced when the liquid hit her side, but she could deal with the pain as the blood clotted the injury.

Once Liam was done, he looked at Ur. "I'm going to see if I can find Kaneko, but I don't want to leave you here."

Ur looked at her young protege. "She wouldn't be too far, right? Go get her, Liam. I'll wait for you here."

The young man widened his eyes. "Are you sure? What about you? Your in-"

The rebel leader twitched and then snapped, "Just get out of here!"

The mutant was taken aback a bit by her yelling, but he nodded out of understanding. He should know Ur better than that. She was tough, even if she was injured. "I'll be back," he said as he ran where Kaneko would be.

* * *

 _*to Kaneko*_

Kaneko panted as she lay on the ground. Thankfully, she managed to avoid most of the gun shots, but she could not evade all of them. Still, if she was a second slower, she may have been a bloody piece of Swiss cheese...even more so than she was at that moment. It hurt to move, and she just lay there, waiting for someone to come to her or death itself. She prayed it would be the former. After all, she had so much she needed to do in her life, and she was not prepared to die, at least not yet.

She put her hand over her necklace and stared at the murky sky with glassy eyes that stung from the tears that welled up. This situation was all too familiar with her, and it was in this position where she was found in the first place.

It was six years ago, and she was with her family. They were community workers, and they did whatever they could to help the people in her city be at ease - whether it was supplying food, rebuilding houses, or donating useful items to those who needed them the most. She would sometimes help by either playing with the children, cooking, or supplying the materials needed for rebuilding these homes.

Then one day, a few soldiers came, and they were armed. Her parents had just finished rebuilding a home for a family, and Kaneko was babysitting their children. While they did not see it coming, the soldiers aimed their guns and opened fire. The young ravenette noticed the fire and tried desperately to warn her parents...but it was too late. Her parents were killed, and so were the parents of the children.

Then, the soldiers proceeded to tear down the house, and this infuriated Kaneko. After telling the children to go hide, she picked up a pipe that was on the ground and ran toward the soldiers while screaming bloody murder at them. However, before she could attack, her throat was grabbed and she thrown on the ground. She hit her head on the stone, and this gave her a concussion.

She could barely make it out, but she could see the evil and malicious grin of a boy with pink hair looking back at her. He did not look that much older than her, but something about him made her think he was the soldiers' leader. How is that possible? She was 13 at this time, so how could he be so young and commanding at the same time.

Even in her concussed state, she tried to fight back, but he stopped her from moving by straddling her hips, and grabbing her wrists with one hand. "Uh uh...perhaps you shouldn't move, sweetheart...especially if you want more bloodshed." He nodded to a couple soldiers as they quickly grabbed the children, picked them up, and carried them away. The children fought and struggled, but the soldiers took precautions and chloroformed them to make them go to sleep. Kaneko cried and screamed as she tried to fight Natsu's grip.

Then the man caressed her cheek and told her, "your parents were fools. But don't worry, I'll keep you alive," his hand went down to one of her breasts and he squeezed it with full strength, "just to see you squirm like the helpless bitch you are." This made her yell painfully as she kicked at his groin, but he got up before she could. As he left, a couple soldiers shot her in both knees so she would not follow, and then they walked after their boss, leaving Kaneko there.

Now here she was, lying on her back and helpless, just as she was back then. Her parents never deserved the treatment they got, and for this reason, Kaneko developed a strong hatred for Natsu. She made it her goal to track him down and make him regret the pain he left on her, but that was only the beginning. She wanted to make him feel every ounce of agony that he inflicted on the families he hurt, as well as her own. That was why she joined Ur's group - well one of the reasons. The other reason, was that Ur found her and saved her life. She wanted to repay her mentor for everything she gave back to her.

She could barely hear Liam calling her, and she closed her eyes as she tried to control her breathing. "KANEKO!" Liam called again. Her eyes widened when she heard her name being called a second time. "L-Liam.." She stuttered.

Liam ran to her side and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her eyes looking back at him. "You're alive, thank goodness," He said as he took off his shirt and put it around her. Kaneko blushed a little at this. She always had a thing for shirtless men, and Liam's muscles were unlike any others she has seen. Her friend carefully put his hands underneath her and lifted her up, despite his injuries. "Let's go back. Ur's waiting, and we just called for back-up."

The injured, young woman rested her head on his bare chest. "Thank you..." She said softly as tears fell from her eyes.

Liam looked down at her. She was one of the toughest girls he knew, and it was a rare sight to see her so vulnerable and helpless. This broke his heart a little, but he could understand why she would be in this state. He gave her a small smile as he started to head back to where Ur was.

* * *

 _*to Mirajane*_

Mirajane was on the ground, barely able to move. Gray was barely conscious and in the arms of a man in a mask. He wore the usual black, bullet proof vest over black clothing. Knee-high, armoured boots covered half of his pants, and a sniper rifle was situated on his back. Around his waist was a black belt adorned with the taser baton, several knives, and two .45 pistols. The mask on his face was in two colours that each took up a side. One side of the mask was black and the other was orange. Almond-shaped, menacing eye-holes pierced both sides of the mask.

"If I were you, I would stay down," The man spoke again. "You wouldn't want me to hurt you any further." Mira's heart broke when she heard the words of the man - it couldn't be! The man turned and walked away. "This must be good bye..."

"Brother, wait!" Mira called, hoping that the feeling in her heart was a lie. The man stopped. "Please...don't do this," she begged.

"Don't move!" The man snapped. "You are not my sister. I only have Lisanna and that is all."

"Elfman!" Mira screamed. She finally had the strength to move as the numbness went away. However, she immediately had a knife thrown at her. The knife grazed her cheek and she widened her eyes.

"I warned you," Elfman coldly threatened. "Move again and this time I won't miss." He turned his back and walked away.

She looked down, her body shaking due to the despair she was feeling. Elfman was her younger brother and Lisanna was her younger sister. The three of them were together since childhood, but they never knew their parents. However, they were all adopted by Igneel, who was like their father figure. This was how they all got the chance to work for him.

Then, when the elder sister found out the darkest secrets that the Dragneel had, she left without any hesitation. She would have told her siblings about what she saw, but the truth she saw was enough to traumatize her. If she told her brother and sister the truth, chances were they would be as traumatized as she was.

Yes, it was selfish, but she had their well-being in mind. She knew that someday she will try to convince them to come with her, but would it be that simple especially after what she put them through? From the cold words that Elfman told her, she could guess not. Like a fierce tidal wave, guilt washed over her. How could she have been so cruel to her only family?

"ELFMAN! I'M SORRY!" She screamed, tears streaming down her face. Elfman turned to face her. Mira stood up slowly. "Please, Elfman," she begged. "I was selfish, but I had both of your well-beings in mind. There is a deep dark truth about the family you work for and-" She was cut off with a shot to her arm and she screamed in pace as her hand shot up to her wound.

Elfman pointed his smoking gun at her. "Whatever excuse you have, save it for when you meet your friends in the afterlife." Mira clenched her teeth as she clutched her bleeding arm. "I don't have time for your little excuses," he continued, "you betrayed us all. You had a roof over your head and you were ungrateful to the ones who raised you. That is something that I will never forgive. Now I'm asking you this one more time. Stay there or I will kill you."

Mira could not say anything else. Elfman was right, and all what she had to do was stay there. However, she could not let him take Gray away. She took a step forward. "Elfman, I won't let you do this."

A group of soldiers walked up on either side of her brother. "Then good luck fighting for your life...Mira," Elfman said, "kill her." He walked away as the soldiers rushed toward Mira.

"Elfman! Stop!" She screamed. When she saw the soldiers, she knew she had no choice. The wound in her right arm limited her movements, but it was better to fight than to die on her knees. She grabbed her gun and shot a couple soldiers in their knees, but just when she was about to fire some more, she was punched hard in the face. She staggered back as soon as she was punched, but used her left hand to grab the wrist of another who was about to punch her throat. She twisted the soldier's wrist to break it and then spun around to palm-strike another in the solar plexus. However, her neck was grabbed from behind and she was put in a sleeper-hold. She turned her gun around to shoot the man in the stomach, but was kicked in the ribs. A crack told her that the kick may have broken a couple ribs.

A soldier then put on a pair of brass knuckles, and Mira struggled out of the grip of the one that held her. However, the one that held her tightened his grip, and she could no longer breathe. With no oxygen, she started to fade. Where was Gin when she needed him?! Wasn't he behind her? What about the Viper code that they had sworn to each other when the group began?

Suddenly, an arrow was shot at each of the soldiers - effortlessly hitting their throats, hearts and heads and killing them instantly. As soon as the soldier that held Mira fell after he was hit, he let her go and she could breathe again.

For a moment she was not sure who fire at the soldiers, but when she looked behind her, she could see a tree that was snapped in half. The broken part of the tree was still attached to its stump, and behind it, with another arrow poised and ready to shoot, was Gin. Without a moment's hesitation, he fired at Elfman's back.

Elfman was hit just behind his shoulder, and the pain was enough for him to fall down on a knee, dropping Gray in the process. Gin quickly ran toward his target, another arrow to fire in case his target decided to fight back.

The soldier cursed as he grabbed his gun to fire, but that was shot out of his hand with another arrow. Gin prepared another arrow and aimed in the centre of the other man's back. "You have 5 seconds," he threatened in an icy voice that would give anyone chills. "If you want to see another day, step away from the boy."

Mira ran toward them. "Gin!"

Gin pulled his string back. "Well, bastard? Which is it? And if I see any other tricks, I will shoot faster than you can pull them. So you have 5 seconds...starting now. 5..."

"Gin! Wait!" Mira yelled.

"4," Gin continued his countdown.

Elfman noticed Mira coming and narrowed his eyes at Gin. "Shoot me if you want, but it will cause that girl more pain than you can imagine. You see...I am her brother." He smirked. "Make your move...cyclops."

Gin widened his eyes in shock. This man...who ordered those other soldiers to attack her...who was carrying the object of his mission to the most horrible place on this planet...was her...brother? He almost could not believe it. However, she wouldn't have been the only one with siblings in her group. He also had a sibling who worked for Dragon Corporation, and so did Kunou.

Using this to his advantage, Elfman threw a small bomb at Gin's feet. Gin looked down in shock and shielded his face as he ran toward Mira and tackled her to the ground. It wasn't very big, but the explosion that followed was enough for the white-haired soldier to pick up the barely conscious boy and run off.

Gin looked up and gritted his teeth in frustration. This was becoming more and more annoying. He grabbed his bow and an arrow, aimed, and fired at Elfman's back. Since the last arrow that hit him was enough to slow him down, this arrow hit him on the left calf muscle. "UGH!" Elfman yelled as he dropped Gray once again.

However, just when he was about to tend to his injury, he had a gun pointed at his head. When Mira saw who pointed the gun, a grateful smile flashed on her face. "Laxus!"

"Been a long time...Elfman..." Laxus greeted. He looked around and then looked back the man in front of him. "Looks like no one is covering you this time."

"You're a fool, Laxus," Elfman growled. "You and Mira know what will happen to _anyone_ if they do not cooperate with or fail the Dragneel brothers!"

The blonde looked at Mira and nodded, then looked back at Elfman. "Ah, but you see that's beside the point. You hurt my wife-"

"SHE HURT ME!" Elfman shouted.

Laxus rolled his eyes. "Waa, waa, waa," he replied. "Everyone has problems. Guess you will just have to face Natsu and Zeref on your own."

"You're all weak anyway," Elfman remarked. "You had a chance fighting alongside us, but instead you've gotten soft."

"Is that so?" Laxus questioned. "We live by a certain code, something that even you don't understand. Together we are one. We live as one, we fight as one, we die as one." He pistol-whipped the man hard over the head, knocking him out.

Mira breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you...Laxus."

Laxus looked at Gray and felt a pang in his heart. "Who knew...that we would have to protect Gray Fullbuster."

Mira widened her eyes. "You...know him?"

"I knew his family," he replied. He used to work for Dragon Corporation as a soldier and was one of the forces who abducted the children in Ishvan; Gray and Luna were two of them. This will be awkward when the boy wakes, Laxus knew that. He wondered how the boy would react if he saw his face. Would he get scared? Or would he not remember him? When Gray was taken from his family, Laxus had his helmet on after all.

Gin glared at Laxus. "You didn't need to come. However, you are right in the sense regarding the code."

The blonde looked at him. "We were called for back-up. It was clear that you needed help, otherwise this boy would once again be in the enemy's clutches."

Gin said nothing afterwards, realizing his least-trusted ally's point. He could give the man credit. There was a reason why he did not trust him, and it wasn't because of Kunou's bitter rivalry with him. Laxus used to be a soldier that worked for Dragon Corporation, and even though he was only following orders, it was difficult to trust him at this point. However, he is trying to find his dignity, and if Ur is letting him have a second chance, then who is he to judge?

"Who else is here?" Mirajane asked.

Laxus looked around, noticing the enemy's soldiers running at them from all sides. "It's better that you worry about escaping this place. The mission is the most important." He gave Gray to Mira, who carefully took him in her arms. "Go," Her husband said as he took out his rifle from his back, "I will cover you."

Mira nodded and looked at Gin. "Can you deactivate the camouflage mode on the plane?"

Gin nodded as he took the tablet that Mira tried to use earlier and entered the code. Then he looked at her. "Let's go." He hurried toward the plane, and Mira followed him right away.

Laxus trailed them, taking down some of the soldiers. Gin took out a semi-automatic and let loose on the soldiers as well.

Mira quickly got into the plane and carefully put Gray inside. Then she got into the pilot's seat and started the ignition. Even though Ur, Kaneko and Liam were also in their group, she knew that getting Gray to safety was the most important thing. Also, back-up was there anyway.

Gin mowed down a couple more and quickly got in the plane. "Go!" He yelled as he shut the door, knowing that they filled the plane's capacity. The pilot nodded as she pressed her foot on the gas pedal, driving the plane away from the area. She pulled back the lever, and the plane took off into the air.

A soldier panicked as he took out a rocket launcher to shoot down the plane, but he had a gun against his head. "If I were you, I would take care of your friends," Laxus growled. "If Natsu found out that you harmed his boy, he would kill you...in the worst...possible way." He narrowed his eyes. "Pick one."

The soldier turned around and tried to bash Laxus with the rocket launcher, but the blonde ducked and shot the man in the crotch. The man screamed as he fell. Laxus straightened and spat to the side. "Idiot," he cursed under his breath. Now he needed to regroup with the others and get back to base.

However, just when he was about to leave, he had several lasers pointing at his head. Realizing his predicament, he stopped midway and held up his hands.

"Where are you going?" A familiar voice asked. Laxus looked up, only to see Crow with two soldiers on either side of him. "How rude of you to leave when we were just reuniting. We never got the chance to...catch up." He smirked underneath his cloak. It was an emerald green cloak, with a point at the hood. Think of one of the members of Assassin's Creed.

"It's a pity," Laxus said sarcastically, glaring at Crow as he spoke. "Got the message for a movie and drinks, but I decided to decline on the count of I hate you."

"Tch, so mean," Crow replied, "you were once so ruthless. You were called the Lightning Slayer due to how fast and powerful you were. Zeref hailed you as one of his best soldiers. You were sadistic; you killed without a second thought. Now you've gotten soft...and working with rebels no less. What happened to make you change?"

"How about you suck it?" Laxus retorted.

"Hmph, I see," Crow responded. "Not going to talk. Oh well," He took out his crossbow, "the time for talk is over anyway." He was about to shoot Laxus in the chest.

However, the snipers that were aiming at Laxus were attacked from behind. Minerva sliced through a few with a machete, while Sting took down a few with two .45s, each armed with a silencer. Dan, with a katana in his right hand and a pistol in his left, killed three soldiers by shooting two and beheading the other. Two snipers tried to shoot him, but they were both met with small blade to their head - both of these blades were thrown by Roku. "Thanks for the save, Roku!" Dan waved.

"Yeah, don't mention it," Roku replied as he stood back to back with Dan. "I think there are about 4 left." He looked at Minerva. "Right, Minerva?"

"Right," Minerva affirmed as she looked at them with her looking glass, "each about a mile away from us and each other."

"Then let's fight fire with fire," Sting suggested as he took out a rocket launcher. He fired the explosive toward the middle of both sets of snipers. Both pairs of snipers looked in confusion, thinking that he may have missed. However, the rocket was actually two smaller rockets put together, and they immediately separated. Screams were heard when both rockets collided with their targets, causing a double explosion.

Dan whistled when he saw this. He had never seen such an impactful weapon in his life before, and he was glad he was able to witness it up close.

Meanwhile, Crow and Laxus wasted little time in fighting each other. While Crow was distracted, Laxus had already taken down his men. Growling in frustration, the general attacked the blonde former soldier with his sword, who blocked with electrically-charged taser knife. The shock made Crow drop his blade. Then he was met with a high, side kick to his head, which he blocked. Now the two are locked in an epic fist fight.

"You got lucky with your little friends backing you up," Crow snarled as he dodged a few jabs thrown at his head.

"Together we are one," Laxus recited as he threw an uppercut at his opponent's jaw, making him stagger back with a pained grunt. "We live as one," he ran toward his adversary and executed an air-borne axe kick at his solar-plexus, which caused Crow to almost lose his balance a bit. "We fight as one!" Laxus then threw a right hook at Crow's jaw, making him drop to the ground. He jumped up and punched downwards just when the soldier was falling. "We DIE as one!" His fist was going to hit Crow's nose, but his stomach was met with a kick. When Crow hit the ground, he used his hands to break his fall and kicked upward at Laxus's stomach.

This knocked the wind out of Laxus. "UGH!" He dropped to the ground on one knee.

"Are you done?" Crow asked as he stood up. Laxus looked up and growled when he noticed there were barely any welts on his opponent's skin from when he hit him. There were bruises, but there were very few. It was clear that this man had been training intensely since he was gone. "I let you hit me just to prove the difference between you and me," Crow explained as he grabbed Laxus by the throat, "but you want to know the sad truth?" He took out a blade and stabbed the blonde in the stomach with it, earning a pained yell. "None of your punches hurt...at all. That's why you're weak." He ripped out the blade, threw Laxus up in the air and punched him _hard_ in the jaw.

The man yelled as he hit the ground. He could barely move his jaw, and he could tell that Crow's punch may have dislocated it. His knife wound proceeded to bleed out, and it seemed like there was no hope.

Crow put the knife back in a small sheath in his robes and turned his back. "However, I will do no further damage. Get your jaw fixed, Laxus...then tell that boy the truth." He walked toward his plane. "That will prove to him how hypocritical all of you are."

Laxus painfully rolled over and glared at Crow as he was getting away. How could he lose when he thought he had the upper hand? No matter what he did, the other man was always a step ahead...ever since day one.

* * *

 _*Flashback, 9 years ago*_

A red-haired man stood in a white lab coat as he observed the boys walked in. His eyes were brown and cold as steel; his hands were situated in his pockets. There was a sense of authority about him. Two boys were beside him - one was a taller boy with black hair and the other was much longer with pink hair. "Watch closely, Zeref and Natsu," the man told them, "for you will take over my job someday." The boys just nodded as they continued to observe.

They all gathered in a large room, no larger than an assembly. Most of the boys were afraid, very few were excited, but the rest were indifferent. Among those were indifferent, was a boy of white hair. He seemed to be the loner type, not wanting to talk to anyone around him. A boy in blonde was beside him. He was nervous about what would happen next, but he knew he had to be strong. Maybe getting to know one of the boys can keep his mind at ease?

He looked at the white haired boy, "Hi."

The white-haired boy did not say anything for a while. The last thing he needed was someone talking to him at this point. However, he could not turn the boy down. Maybe if he spoke to him, he would be left alone. "Hi."

"What's your name?" The blonde asked.

The other boy looked at him, "Crow...Jackson Crow."

* * *

 **A little shorter than the other chapters, but I hope that it's still worth the read. Let me know what you think!**


	6. My Immortal

**And finally! After 2 months of inactivity in this fanfic, I finally got chapter 6 done! I had issues with it so I had to re-write it. However, what I had written before will be transferred to chapter 7. So in a way chapter 7 has been started. With that said, I hope you all enjoy this chapter just as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

 **I don't own anything except for Kaneko. Fairy Tail is owned by Hiro Mashima and affiliations while My Immortal is property of Evanescense and affiliations. The original characters here are owned by friends of mine. I want to thank HarbingerofFire for helping me write a scene in this chapter.**

* * *

Chapter 6: My Immortal

 _*Present*_

Laxus could feel his body growing numb from the loss of blood. As he lay there, he was full of regret. How was he going to tell everyone else? Mira knows a little bit of his time as a soldier, but she did not know the full story, even if they worked for the same company. For one thing, she was a scientist who, like him, was too busy with her job.

He was glad that he didn't give her the details. Otherwise, she would probably have left him. What did she even see in him anyway? She did give light to his life after all, and she gave him the ultimatum to use his skills for good instead of helping an evil organization with their questionable methods of finding the cure for the human race.

There was one thought that plagued his mind, however. He was bleeding out, so when will he get help?

The sound of footsteps was the last thing he could think of before he fell unconscious.

At headquarters, Crow and Elfman walked down the hallway. Since the enemy had gotten away with their objective, they knew the repercussions that await them. All of a sudden, they were blindsided with a kick to each of their heads.

Elfman grunted as he staggered forward. However, Crow turned around and blocked the kick. He could see the steely eyes of one of the women that attacked the rebels in Hargeon, more specifically Kaneko Aikawa. The other woman that attacked Liam and Ur was beside her, as she was the one that kicked Elfman.

"It seems that you were swift enough to block my high kick," the woman in Crimson and black stated as she lowered her leg back to a standing position. "However..." She spun around and swiftly kicked Crow's stomach before he can block it. "You know you could never be quick enough to match my speed."

Crow was not phased by her kick. "And you know that your kicks can't hurt me," He shot back as he glared down at her.

"Tch...you're in big trouble..." She looked at Elfman, "And so are you."

Elfman got up. "We know," he said.

"Yeah well, it's not like we're going on another mission anytime soon," Crow added, "So you can start by taking off that mask...Lucy."

Elfman looked at the woman who kicked him, "and you too, Lisanna."

Both women took off their masks, and since they had contact lenses for the extra effect, they took those off too. "These lenses were making my eyes hurt anyway," Lucy said as she shook her brilliant blonde hair.

"You said it," Lisanna agreed as she rubbed her white hair. "At least we will have our fun with Natsu-sama tonight." She giggled and Lucy giggled in agreement.

Crow rolled his eyes. "We don't want to know about your sex lives." He walked into the office with Elfman following.

"Why? Because you will never have sex...ever?" Lucy taunted.

"Because I'm not interested," Crow corrected coolly.

"So boring," Lisanna remarked as she rolled her eyes.

Once they arrived in the office, Malik was already there, waiting for them with Riza. The office itself was fairly large and could be confused as a meeting room. There was a large table in the middle of it. A desk stood in front of the back wall, with a large portrait of Igneel held above it. Two windows were on either side of the portrait. "Took you two long enough," the mutant said as he glared at them both.

"We were preoccupied," Elfman excused and Lisanna smirked.

Malik looked at Lisanna and then at Lucy before looking away. "I..see..." Riza nodded toward Lisanna.

Zeref, Kietsu and Natsu walked into the room and the group stood at attention. "At ease," Zeref spoke and the group sat down. "You all know the reason why you gathered around in here. So tell me...how did it go?"

Malik spoke up, "we encountered the rebels at Hargeon City...or what's left of it. They seemed to have found Fullbuster."

Natsu widened his eyes and was about to say something, but Zeref raised a hand. "And you fought them well it seems.

"Liam, Ur and Kaneko are gravely injured," Riza reported.

However, the intense look never left Natsu's eyes. "I believe I told you that a hair on Kaneko's head should NOT be harmed!"

"That would be my fault, Natsu-sama," Lucy replied. "I did not know that that girl shouldn't be harmed. She was an enemy, who _almost_ took me down, and was very troublesome and annoying. Forgive me..."

"You get a warning because you're so sexy," Natsu said as he smacked her ass. Then he turned to the rest of the group. "However, where is Gray?"

Crow tensed. "That is the thing, sir. We almost had him, but-"

Suddenly, he was interrupted with an intense pain in the back of his neck. Elfman could feel it too, and they both tried to resist screaming. Zeref was pressing the button on a hand-held device. "You remember these chips, don't you?"

How could they not forget? Every employee and subject had them so that they would be kept in line, and this is what they received when they failed or refused to cooperate. It was like white-hot heat being pressed in the back of your neck...or even one of those cattle-killing rods. Even the toughest would have a hard time keeping in their torturous screams.

Kietsu looked on in amusement of the men's faces twisted in painful agony. He wondered how long it would be before any of one of them could break under the pressure, especially Crow. This was going to be an interesting experiment to witness.

"Stop...this!" Elfman begged as he tried to hold on. At this rate, this could create permanent to his spine, which was where the chip was located, at the back of his neck.

Zeref's mouth twisted into a sinister smirk. "You promise you will be good?"

"YES, JUST STOP PLEASE! AHHHHHHH!" Elfman screamed.

Kietsu watched in wonder. So he predicted that the emotionless soldier would give in, and not so-called "manly man". It seemed that Crow had more willpower than he thought. He looked at the other man, who was also having a very difficult time keeping in his screams.

The evil smirk never left the elder Dragneel's face as he looked at the other soldier. "And what about you, Jackson? It seemed that you were just as useless as your father was."

Even throughout his struggle, he could very much hear what his older boss said. "DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT MY FATHER THAT WAY!"

Zeref frowned as he stopped pressing the button, making both soldiers collapse while gripping their necks. "Even though you two failed us, I still need you as my most skilled soldiers," he looked at Malik, Riza and Kietsu, "aside from you three of course."

Malik looked in confusion. Why wasn't he punished as well? Then again, he did not fail the Dragneels like the other two did. However, he was still on the battlefield. Maybe there was another reason. He looked at Lucy. _And she should have been punished too,_ he continued his thoughts, _then again she is in Natsu's so-called "harem"._

"If I may," Kietsu interjected.

"Go ahead, Kietsu," Zeref permitted. Even though Kietsu answered directly to him, he always had the greatest, tactical plans. This was why the ravenette always listened to what the white-hair would have to say.

Kietsu looked at Natsu. "You remember this ring, right?" He held up the nanotechnology ring he had shown him earlier.

"What about it?" Natsu asked.

"Well, if the rebels have Gray, then this can work to our favour," Kietsu explained with a smirk.

Knowing fully well what Kietsu meant, Natsu grinned. "This is brilliant!" He finished off with laughter that echoed throughout the room and even part of the hallway outside.

"Before it happens," Zeref intervened, "the rest of you must rest for the night and recover from today's battle. You're all dismissed."

Natsu grinned as he groped both girls at his sides. "Let's go party, you two." Lucy licked her lips in excitement as the two dragged their lover away from the room. Zeref nodded to Kietsu, and he left with Riza and Malik.

Crow was going to be the last one to leave when Zeref cleared his throat. This made him stop and turn to Zeref. "What is it...Zeref-sama?"

"It would be wise not to fail me again," he warned.

The chill from his voice as it echoed throughout the room would intimidate anyone who would scare easily. However, Crow was one of the people who learned to not be intimidated. After all, he never showed emotions since he was a child, except for anger at times. "Yes sir," he affirmed.

"Furthermore, you are to show me exactly why my father saved your life. Any other incidents, he will turn over in his grave in shame. After all, you wouldn't want me to remind you how the accident that ruined everything was your fault."

That was further from the truth. Crow clenched his fists in retaliation. It was an accident, so how dare he blame him for something that he had no control over?! He just could not get away in time.

"Now...go rest and recover," Zeref ordered. "Then tomorrow, show me why you're called the Death's Hand."

"Yes, sir," The soldier nodded in understanding and left the office, rubbing the back of his neck and wincing.

"It must hurt," Kietsu spoke while leaning against the wall. "If only your father could see you now."

Any man would attack Zeref's assistant after hearing his insults. However, Crow just stood still, knowing the repercussions of what would happen if he did. "What do you want, Seishin?"

"You're tougher than what I can give you credit for. However, I will be in charge of tomorrow's raid. So you better be...whatever you were called before...or else. This is your last chance."

Crow just glared at the other man. He hated having to suck up to him. However, he answered directly to Zeref, so he had no other choice. "Fine, I get the point. You didn't have to tell me what I already know."

"Fly away, little bird," Kietsu taunted with a chuckle. "I'll see you later." He walked away.

Crow just sighed as he also walked away. He could admit that the other man was skilled at what he does, but he was never trained to be a super soldier like the former. Tomorrow he was going to show the enemy what he was truly capable of. There was no question about it. The time for games was over. Someone was going to die tomorrow, and it's not going to be him.

At the Desert Viper base, the sound of melancholic piano music was heard as it resonated through the halls. Wondering where the music was coming from, Kunou walked down the hall, following the sounds. There seemed to be a voice singing along with the music as well:

"So tired of being here...suppressed by all my childhood fears. If you have to leave, I wish that you would leave because your presence still lingers here, and it won't leave me alone."

Who could be singing? He edged closer toward the music and arrived at a doorway. This doorway would lead to the lounge. How had he not notice the piano in there before? He just stood at the doorway as he listened.

"These wounds can't seem to heal. This pain is just too real. There's just too much that time cannot erase."

He peeked around the corner and saw Levy playing the piano. Her daughter lay on the couch next to it as she listened. They were not alone either: Dan, Roku and Kagari were there, and Levy was giving them a concert. However, the red-head didn't think that the one playing piano had noticed their arrival. After all, if he could look closely, he could tell that she had tear-tracks running down her face. Why could she be crying?

"When you cried, I'd wipe away all of your tears. When you'd scream, I'd fight away all of your fears. And I held your hands throughout all of these years, but you still have all of me."

Roku looked down as he listened to the music. He and Dan had just returned after the skirmish at Hargeon and had decided to unwind. However, when they returned, they heard the piano music from the lounge. As soon as he heard the music, he thought of Cana.

"You used to captivate me by your resonating light. Now I'm bound by the life you left behind. Your face, it haunts my once-pleasant dreams. Your voice, it chased away all of the sanity in me."

He looked at Levy once again as she sang. There was only one person he knew she could be singing about, and that was Gajeel. He didn't know the man for very long, but he did know that he was her husband and that they were happily married for six years. However, two years ago, he disappeared from her life and never returned. Levy had been broken ever since. At least she had her friends and her daughter to keep her together.

"These wounds can't seem to heal. This pain is just too real. There's just too much that time cannot erase."

These words were true for all of them. Everyone has had his or her fair share of losses, and this dreaded apocalypse was the cause of it. However, there was one thing that helped them overcome their losses, and that was the fact that they had each other. Nonetheless, the losses just keep coming.

Roku knew that the loss of his sister had affected everyone, and he thought about Takuma, who was still unconscious in his room. What will happen when he's awake? And who will bring him back to his senses? He looked at Kagari. Will he be the one who would comfort his twin? Will it be Erza? Or will it be Roku himself? These three were the ones who would most likely reach him. Roku sighed as he continued to listen to the music.

"When you cried, I'd wipe away all of your tears. When you'd scream, I'd fight away all of your fears. And I held your hand throughout all of these years, but you still had all of me." Levy added emotion as she arrived to the bridge. "I've tried so hard to tell myself that you're gone, but though you're still with me." She crescendoed to a strong forte, "I've been alone all along!"

During the instrumental bridge, Dan looked up. This has always been one of his favourite songs, so it was a coincidence that he found the bluenette playing it. Why was this a favourite? Well, it made him think of his parents...when they were murdered by rioters during a trip back home.

An apocalyptic world is never a pleasant thing. Much of the planet is dried up, and resources are limited. The human population of seven hundred billion plus has dwindled down to a few thousand. Everyone has to do their part to stay alive and at the same time, preserve the spirit of humanity. However, the latter is very difficult to do, as these conditions can drive people insane. Fear can drive humans to do crazy things: looting, abuse...even murder. Those are only under extreme measures.

That was what happened to his parents. It was a good thing he hid underneath a blanket in the car. While he was hidden, he could hear the nightmarish sounds of their screaming and glass breaking. He did not know why they were murdered, nor did he care. What mattered was that this had haunted his dreams every night. He was alone and afraid...and he was forced to spend his days on the street to fend for himself.

"When you cried, I'd wipe away all of your tears. When you scream, I'd fight away all of your fears. And I held your hand throughout all of these years, but you still had all of me."

Being alone for years, Dan never had anyone, so he felt jealous of everyone else. He looked over at Roku. Roku was the first friend that he had ever made since he was recruited. The two of them were friends as they were rivals, always testing each other's abilities. Even still, the red-hair couldn't help but feel jealous. Sure, the guy lived on the streets as much as he did, but at least he had Cana.

As Levy repeated the chorus, Dan repeated the name in his head. Who else was going to die? The thought made him frightened, and he was sure everyone else felt the same thing. However, that's what training was for, right? Still, something inside him told him that it might not be enough.

Levy slowed down the song after she repeated the chorus, finishing it with a beautiful coda. Kagari smiled at her. He always appreciated music as long as he could remember. While Takuma was into strategizing and chess, Kagari's passion was music. He may not be the best singer in the world - in fact, Takuma was a far better singer than he was - but he still played guitar pretty well. Music had always kept him strong, and it was a sure way to escape the pains of this world.

As Levy finished, she realized that there were people watching her. Embarrassed, she quickly dried her tears and looked at them. "Oh! I didn't hear you coming in. I'm sorry if that didn't turn out very well."

"No, it was brilliant," Kagari complimented. "You really have a gift. Your voice was shaky, but that was because you were emotional, and it's completely understandable."

"I appreciate your honesty," Levy said.

Kunou just sighed. He wanted to go and say his peace - better yet, smack Kagari around a bit - but it seemed that everyone was enjoying each other's company. Maybe he will talk to her at another time. He turned and walked away to check on what Keria was up to.

"How have you been since...you know," Roku didn't want to finish that sentence because he knew that if he did, Levy would break down crying.

"You can finish that sentence," Levy sighed. Roku raised an eyebrow in confusion. "But...I'm coping," She continued. "Ayame and my piano are keeping me as sane as possible..."

"And so are we," Dan added. "I hope." Levy nodded.

Ayame got off the couch and walked toward Levy to wrap her hands around her. "Don't cry, mommy. Daddy still loves you."

Levy's heart was filled with emotion as she hugged Ayame back, and she just let them out. "Oh Ayame!"

Roku walked toward her and hugged her as well. "Hey, we're here for you." Levy just cried on his shoulder.

Kagari looked at Ayame. He wished there would be a way to soothe her pain as well. After all, they lost a member of their family...no...they lost two. Gajeel was considered MIA for a while now, and he was getting medicine for his son - Ayame's twin brother - Hagane. He knew that losing a significant number was hard enough...but losing a child? That could shatter a parent. Once again, he thought of Takuma.

Roku stopped hugging her and looked at her. "If you feel that you're alone, talk to any one of us okay? Better yet, play us a beautiful song. However, if you can, try to play a happy song too. I'm sure Gajeel and Hagane would appreciate it."

"I'll try," Levy sniffled as he smiled.

Suddenly, their moment was interrupted by Gin rushing in the main entrance. Mira followed close behind. "We're home!" She announced, concerned about the boy that was barely conscious in Gin's arms.

Minerva, who had filled in for Levy, was working the monitor screens nearby. She looked up at the two. "Where are the others?"

Gin looked at her and answered, "They're still in the plane. Alert the rest of the group to bring them in ASAP."

"Right!" Minerva exclaimed. She glanced at Gray for a moment before operating the telecom device. "Attention, Vipers, Gin and the others have arrived. They need help immediately. Ur, Kaneko, and Liam are still in the plane. I need people to help. I repeat, I need people to help."

Aiden was sitting alone, smoking in on a balcony outside his room, as he heard Minerva. "I guess work beckons," he said as he tossed the cigarette out the window and walked off toward the plane.

Erza also heard the report. "Mom..." She trailed off as she quickly ran toward the plane as well.

Kagari was about to sit up, but Dan beat him to it. "I'll go. Besides, Kagari, you're injured too, remember?" He quickly ran toward the plane. The blonde watched him leave. He looked at Levy and said, "If you need anything, feel free to ask."

Levy nodded. "Thank you, Kagari."

When Aiden, Erza, and Dan arrived, Raiden and Cynthia were already there. "Welcome, soldiers," Cynthia greeted as Raiden helped Liam, then Ur out. Kaneko was still unconscious due to being shot up.

Ur looked at her lieutenant and nodded. "Thank you, Cynthia." Then she looked back at Kaneko, concern imminent on her face.

Erza looked at Aiden. "Aiden...please be careful." Aiden just nodded as he walked toward Kaneko, picked her up carefully, and ran toward the infirmary so that she could be tended to. Then the Scarlet looked at Ur. "Mom...are you alright?"

Ur smiled. "I'll be fine, Erza. I just have some loss of blood, but with some rest, I will be as good as new."

Dan looked at Erza. "Help your mom inside. I'll deal with Liam." His fellow soldier nodded as she did so. Then Dan looked at Liam, who was also very concerned for Kaneko, and put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey...she's tough. She can bounce back from this." More or less, he was telling himself this due to his earlier thoughts from before. However, he knew that Liam was closer with Kaneko than anyone in their group.

Liam just sighed and nodded. "I know she's tough. You didn't have to tell me that."

Dan smiled. "Alright, let's head in." Before he could help the mutant inside, he looked around, realizing that one soldier had not made it back yet. "Where's Laxus?"

Cynthia glared at the young man. "Take Liam inside, Dan. That's an order!" She barked.

"Alright! Alright! I was just wondering, that's all," Dan replied, taken aback by the second-in-command's cold tone. She could have at least gone easy on him and loosen up a bit. Sure, she's a soldier with a cold attitude, but she didn't have to treat her subordinates like second-class citizens.

As the injured were taken back inside, Raiden closed the plane door and headed inside after the others, not wanting to get on Cynthia's bad side. Being from a military background, he was taught to just do all tasks and ask questions later...and he learned the hard way.

Once everyone headed inside and the injured were being taken care of, Kagari, Levy and Roku had joined their allies in the main area. Ur noticed Gray and then looked up at Gin. "How bad is his wound?"

"He will be fine," The head doctor replied as he looked down at the subject in question, "A bit more traumatized than injured though..."

Puzzled by her adopted mother's question, Erza watched them go and then looked at Gin. "Wound?" She repeated. "What wound?" She dreaded what the answer might be.

Gin just sighed as he continued working on Ur's wound for now. Mira was busy operating on Kaneko in another room. "Don't worry about it, Erza. Also, shouldn't you be spending time with Jellal?"

"I'm right here," Jellal spoke up as he was leaning against the wall. He glared at Gray who was lying on a bed next to Ur. "And that is no ordinary wound," he pointed out. Erza tensed as she took a better look at it, noticing the blue tinge in shock. "He needs to be put down," Jellal continued as he once again looked at Gin fiercely.

The doctor deeply frowned at the bluenette. "I'll put you down first before I put him down. So leave or else I will have you try living the way I have been...with one eye. Besides, you're not the boss so silence your tongue."

"Are you crazy?!" Erza shot back. "A _zombie_ just hurt him! You think you can let him live like that?!" There was an intense look of fear and anger in her eyes, and Kagari knew exactly what was on her mind.

Jellal took out his 45. "Then...I will do it." He pointed his gun toward Gray. "We will not have him turn, especially here. We've got enough problems already."

Kagari immediately moved on his own. He winced as he had a gun at each of their heads. Erza widened her eyes. "Stand down...Jellal...and you too, sis! I know that this is frightening you, Erza, but this is NO way to greet a scared boy who nearly risked his LIFE out of there! Think about what you're doing and what our purpose is!"

Erza looked at him in shock. Did he just put a gun at her?! Of all the nerve! "Kagari..."

Gin picked up a scalpel and stabbed it into the barrel of Jellal's gun. "Go ahead, Jellal," he said in a threatening tone, "Pull the trigger now."

Kagari faced Jellal and added, "or better yet...drop the gun."

Jellal just lowered the gun. "Tch, you think tht just because you are Ur's adopted son, you can tell me what to do? Get a life before I pistol-whip your sorry ass across this room!"

Now, earlier after Gin finished with Ur's wounds, Cynthia helped her into a room. Once she laid her down, she went back outside and shouted, "At EASE, Fernandes!" Everyone there looked at her. "I will not tolerate ANY in-fighting. I don't CARE what you think, but with Ur injured, I am second-in-command. So if you want to be court-marshalled, then by all means, continue what you're doing!"

At that moment, Jellal gets punched hard in the nose by Aiden, making him grunt in pain and stagger back. "I advise listening to her. Also, shut up and leave Kagari alone. It's rather pathetic of you to threaten an injured man, but then again you got no balls, so I guess it makes sense."

Knowing that there was no longer any need to hold the two at gunpoint, Kagari lowered both of his guns. Sometimes he did not like the lieutenant because of how harsh she can be, but she was his superior and he had no choice. Erza, on the other hand, wanted to calm down from all of this. She stormed off toward her room, and Kagari watched her with a sigh. Realizing that he was done for now, Aiden sat down on a chair.

Gin sighed as he began to tend to Gray. Without looking at the Ichijo, he spoke, "Your sister has a lot of issues, Kagari...and bad taste in guys."

"I know," Kagari agreed, "I will apologize to her later." _In about five minutes,_ he finished in his head.

Cynthia sighed and looked at Gin. "Once you've finished with Gray, put him in the quarantine for a couple of days. This is an order from Ur herself." Gin nodded in response.

Immediately, Gray grabbed the doctor's sleeve with a shaking and pale hand - any harder and his hand would be completely white. Kagari noticed this, remembering how scared he was when he had escaped that place. Perhaps he could check on Takuma, but first he needed to apologize to Erza. After holstering his guns, he walked toward Erza's room.

Noticing his patient's behaviour, the silver-hair placed a hand gently on his shoulder. "Calm, young one...calm," he soothed in a gentle voice.

However, even with Gin's calming words, Gray could not stop shaking. He wanted to cry or scream, but nothing came out. Where was he? Was he back at Dragon Corporation? He did not like this. Roku looked at him and then faced Gin. "I think he needs a sedative."

Roku's request was ignored, and Gray could hear Gin's whispers in his ear: "I promise you...that you're safe. We are here to protect you, and I will take care of you. Just...try to trust me." With these words, Gray started to calm his breathing. Maybe he can trust this man who is asking care of him right at that moment. Even though he was barely conscious, two tears slipped from his eyes as he started to take Gin's assurances to heart.

At this moment, Mira sighed in exhaustion as she walked out of the operating room. "How is she?" Dan wanted to know, hoping for good news.

"Surgery was a success," Mira answered with a weary smile. This was finally her moment to get some relaxation as she yawned. "I'm going to my room to rest. I'm really exhausted."

Aiden nodded as he looked at her, "Have a nice nap then." She smiled back and started headed towards her room.

Suddenly, Sting burst through the door. "Finally! We're back!" He had Laxus' arm around his neck. "Need a medic immediately! He's hurt pretty bad!"

Mira sharply turned around and gasped in shock. Sting wasn't kidding; her husband was in horrible shape, and he had his other hand on his stomach as though he was trying to stop himself from bleeding. Blood had seeped through his fingers and was covering his entire hand. "Laxus!" She screamed.

Gin had just finished tending to Gray, and looked up at Sting. With such a high volume of injured patients, he was afraid he would be up all night. This was something he was used to, so he wasn't complaining. "Quickly! Put him down!"

When Sting carefully laid Laxus down, he was mumbling something in regards to Crow. "I found him on the ground, and his stomach was bleeding."

Mira quickly ran toward her husband, while gripping cloths on the way, and kneeled before him. Then she proceeded to apply pressure to his wound. "Hang on..."

After putting a glass of clean water beside Gray so that he can drink, Gin rushed over toward Laxus and started to tend to him. He also set up a mirror so that he could monitor the younger patient in case of any changes.

"I applied a hemostatic on him and wrapped his wound tightly," Sting explained, "However...somehow on the flight back, his wound re-opened."

"He was covering for us," Mira said as she inwardly prayed that he would be alright. "He was fighting Crow." She did not mention her brother as it was too painful for her to do that, even think about him. Only Gin knew the truth, and that was all she wanted at the moment.

"No wonder," Sting replied, "He kept mumbling the bastard's name like he's doing right now."

Mira was too exhausted, and she wasn't in a good mood. Her husband was injured like this, and with everything going on right now, she was starting to get a massive headache. She looked up at the blonde, her eyes as cold as steel. "Look...you're done here. Get a drink. Have a rest. I don't care what you do. Just let me and Gin deal with this, okay?"

The hacker was taken aback by her scolding. He could tell that she was very exhausted, and this worried him. He seemed like a deer in headlights as he looked at her. "Mira, are you a-"

"GO!" She snapped. Sting nodded and backed away. He had never seen Mira like this. Did something happen to her during the mission? Still, from his understanding of women and how they think, when they're in a bad mood, the best thing to do is just stay away and let them cool off.

Gin placed a hand on Mira's arm. "Mira...go rest. I can handle this on my own." If anyone could look closer, he was starting to get tired himself. However, he had trained himself to keep going during situations like these.

Mira looked down at Laxus and stroked his hair, only to feel that he was slightly feverish. This alarmed her. The injury must be making her husband's body go into stress. She looked at the other doctor and a tear fell down from her eyes. "Gin..." She pled.

The grip on her arm started to be a little more tense, making her wince a little bit. Gin knew that the woman was going through stress of her own, and he did not want her to get sick or anything because of it. "Go, Mira, don't make me ask again."

"Okay, I'm going," she said, "Just give me any news about his condition."

Gin let go and gave her an assuring nod. He put a cloth in a bowl of water and draped it over Laxus' head. Then he continued to tend to his wounds. Later, he will ask about the soldier's confession from earlier, but for now he will hold his tongue and ensure his patient's survival. After all, as much as he hated to admit it, the blonde was an expert-level fighter and a powerful ally. So despite his short-comings, he was valuable to the team.

Mira walked toward her room, clutching her arm as she did so. She had a lot of things on her mind, and the only thing she needed right now was to relax.

The others were also a little shocked when she snapped at Sting. It was from exhaustion, right? They all knew that she was stressed - her husband was severely wounded, she had just performed surgery. Most, like Sting, were smart enough to leave her alone.

However, Raiden was curious. He wanted to do something to help her, despite her short outburst. Maybe he could ask her what was wrong. However, when he approached her, she screamed at her to leave her alone before slamming the door to her room.

This earned many face-palms at the base, and Sting shook his head as Raiden came back to the main area. "You, my friend, have a lot to learn when it comes to women."

Having heard Mira's second outburst and overheard Sting talking to Raiden, Kunou walked up and shoved him back a bit. Raiden used his balance to keep himself upright. "Hey idiot," the red-hair said, "don't bug Mira and leave her alone."

"Sorry, I was concerned," Raiden excused himself as he rubbed his shoulder. "It was a mistake, but now that I have the message, I will stop bothering her."

Kunou glared at Raiden and walked off. _Fucking moron_ , he cursed in his thoughts.

Earlier, before Mira's outbursts, Kagari walked to Erza's room and knocked on the door. "What?" He could hear his sister's snappish tone from outside the door. Since she was upset, he had to be calm if he wanted to apologize to her. "Hello Erza. Can I come in?"

"I got nothing to say to you," Erza replied. She was sitting on her bed in the fetal position.

"But I got something to say to you," Her brother answered. "You don't have to let me in, just hear me out." He waited for her to respond, but she didn't. This gave him the signal to keep going. "I want to apologize for pulling a gun on you. It's just...you were acting out of hand. I had to stop you."

"Out of hand?" Erza repeated. "You _know_ I've seen my family change before my very eyes. I was nearly killed by my own family. My friends changed before my eyes. I can't take it!"

"I know," Kagari said as he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, "However, you need to be strong and keep a cool head. You don't need to worry about Gray changing. He didn't seem to be changing anytime soon, and he needed help. This is a boy that needs us, so we have to do our jobs as this world's saviours to keep him safe. Do you see the point I am trying to make?" He waited for another response.

Instead of her speaking again, the door opened and she was in front of him. "I do," she replied. "I'm sorry...for how I acted."

Kagari smiled and hugged her. "It's okay, sis. Besides, if Gray does start to change, then I or Gin will put him down. You won't have to witness it either."

"Thank you," Erza replied as she returned his hug.

"However, I am not sorry for pulling the gun on Jellal," The blonde trailed off.

Erza just sighed as she stopped hugging him. "He's not a bad guy once you get to know him."

"Still, I don't trust him. He might be a bad egg in our group."

Erza sighed again, "Give him time. He may be cold but at least he's a good fighter and a strong asset to our team." It was at the moment they heard Mira screaming. "Laxus is here," she continued.

"And it seems he's hurt bad," Kagari added. He was going to go over and help, but Erza touched his arm, making him look back at her.

"Let Gin deal with this for now," Erza suggested. "Besides, shouldn't you check on Takuma?"

How did she know? Kagari smiled. "Gosh Erza, get out of my head," he quipped with a laugh.

Erza giggled, "Just go and let me know of his condition." Kagari nodded and walked toward Takuma's room. After watching him leave, the Scarlet closed the door, hoping that Laxus and Mira would be okay soon. After all, they were very close friends to her.

Lyon lay in bed in his cell at the Dragon Corporation. He wondered how Gray was doing and if he was safe. This was all part of the bargain that they made. He would help Gray escape and find help from the rebels he had overheard guards talking about. Then after a while, they would return to save Lyon and the rest of the prisoners. This was all part of the plan to reunite the siblings and Lyon with his childhood friends.

He knew Gray even before they were abducted as they were neighbours, and ever since they became friends, they always had each other's backs. Then when they were abducted, everything changed. They saw so many of their friends die, and Gray got hurt while fighting one of the monsters those sick bastards had chained up.

However, that wasn't the worst thing that happened. When Natsu had ordered the boys and girls to be separated, that was the last straw. Who was once a happy and cheerful young man who could do anything he could set his mind to, fully transformed into a frightened, mute and half-blind one. They broke him, and they are breaking his sister as well, Lyon just knew it. That was why he formed an elaborate plan to help Gray escape.

At least the higher-ups don't know about this yet. However, what would happen if they did find out? Would it be the end for him? Lyon turned on his side and sighed. He didn't want to die yet, especially when his friend Sherry and her sister Chelia were depending on him. This would take a while, given Gray's condition, but it was the best plan the bluenette could think of at the moment.

Yelling was heard down the hall. "Lights out!" Crow shouted as he hit each of the doors with his baton taser. "Names will be called tomorrow morning, so no talking or else your name won't be called!"

Lyon tensed at the yelling. Everyone was told that when their names were called, they would be free. However, he doubted that completely. He was sure several others knew that too.

"And you need all the sleep you can get!" Crow added. Once he reached the end of the hallway, he didn't hear anyone talking.

Satisfied that he didn't hear anyone, he headed toward his room, closed the door and lay down. It was going to be a long day tomorrow, he knew that. As his eyes closed, he felt himself having the same dream that he dreamt every night.

* * *

 **And that is done! You will read more of Crow's story next chapter and other things as well. The action will take place the following chapter. Let me know what you think of this chapter!**


	7. The Reaper's Hand

**Super sorry for the late update! Hope you all can forgive me. Shout out to my friend TM11 (Santiago Marques) for help with the flashback. Oh and he has a account here too, which I just mentioned - TM11. Check out his stories. You won't be disappointed.**

 **ON WITH THE STORY!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: The Reaper's Hand**

 _Flashback – 10 years ago_

Zombies – they're the scum of this earth. They had been the bane of fear for almost a century – in literature, in movies, in television. Who knew that they would stem from a horrible man-made virus that had wiped out most of humanity?

Dragon Corporation did. After all, they were the source of this virus. As the only scientific facility in this world, they started off as a pharmaceutical company founded by Lucius Dragneel. Then, after he retired the company to his son, Igneel, the facility expanded into many branches such as physics and even military sciences. When the virus spread, they rose to the top after taking over the military and police headquarters with scientists dedicating their lives to finding a cure and soldiers doing the same, but to keep civilians in line. They had over five million laboratories and about ten thousand military and police training camps worldwide, with the main headquarters located in Tokyo, Japan.

In one laboratory, located in Brooklyn, New York – a man with blonde hair and dark stubble walked into through the main doors. He was fairly tall and lean, with a white lab coat trailing behind him as he walked. His brown eyes were amiable and an excited smile was on his face. A boy of white hair was following him, and his facial expression held the opposite.

"Well Jackson," The scientist said, "We're really close."

Jackson just rolled his eyes, not showing very much interest. Truthfully, he didn't know why he had to accompany his father to work every day. Then again, he was eight years old so it's not like his father had any choice. After all, his mom tragically passed away three years ago from a horrible accident. However, he didn't like this world much like his father did, and the sooner they get that break-through, the sooner this hell would end.

As they walked through the long, white hallway, Jackson looked around at the scientists who smiled at his father as they walked passed him. Even he knew that they respected their father. After all, he was the head scientist.

They were about to turn the corner when they were greeted by a very lovely young woman, who seemed to be in her early thirties. She was dressed in an orange dress, lined with yellow and with yellow straps. A yellow X marked the top-centre of her bodice. Her hair was done up in low pig-tails, each tied with a red ribbon. "Good morning, Jason-san," she bowed cheerfully. Then she grabbed a mug of coffee that stood on the table beside her and gave it to him. "Here is your coffee, sir. French roast and black."

Jason accepted the coffee with gratitude. "Good morning to you too, Zera," he replied. Then he nodded to his son. "I'm sure you met Jackson before."

"How could I forget?" Zera laughed and looked at Jackson. "Hi Jackson! How are you today?"

Jackson just shrugged. "I'm fine, I guess."

"Jackson," Jason warned. "What did I tell you about being rude?"

"Sorry father," Jackson apologized.

However, that did not make Zera's smile falter. "It's quite all right. You probably didn't want to be here, but don't worry. Soon your father will be done, and you two can have a fun day together."

"That's what he promised," Jackson confirmed, wondering how long this would take.

"Well let me make it worth your while," the assistant suggested, "Do you want anything? Juice perhaps?"

"Juice please," The boy answered, politely.

"Any kind of juice?" Zera pressed on as she turned toward the vending machine.

"Doesn't matter," the boy answered curtly, "whichever is fine."

"Alright!" Zera chirped as she put some change into the machine, making a can of orange juice call. Once she reached into the slot to take out the can, she put it in Jackson's hands. "There you go!"

"Thank you," Jackson said as he opened the can.

Zera patted his head and then looked at Jason. "You raised him to be such a fine young man. I'm sure that the girls would swoon over him when he's older."

Jason just nodded and then cleared his throat, making his assistant stand at attention. "Let's back to the matter at hand."

"Of course, sir," Zera replied as the three proceeded to turn the corner and walk down the hallway.

"How are things coming with the project?" The scientist asked, hoping for good results.

"I would say that things are going well," Zera answered as they entered a large room the size of an auditorium. Jackson sipped his juice as he looked around, slightly amazed by his surroundings. Monitors were situated in a semi-circle as scientists were rushing around and checking them, but what amazed him the most was an enormous centrifuge at the back of the room – its halves were spinning in opposite directions. It was almost mesmerizing to look at, and Jackson could tell that this was probably the centre of attention. "Right now, we are extracting the compounds of the virus and reversing them," Zera explained, "we figured that this experiment could come through for us."

Jason looked at the centrifuge, impressed by how well his scientists had worked. "How long will it be until it's finished?"

Zera checked one of the monitors. "Right now, the centrifuge has been going on for half an hour, and I would estimate another five or ten minutes until it's fully ready. Then we just need to test it on our animal subjects."

"Any other news I should know about?" Jason asked, "Was Igneel alerted of this?"

"Yes, sir," Zera confirmed, "one of our scientists spoke to him before this process began, and he should be on his way here on his private jet."

Jackson cocked his head slightly. Who was Igneel? Was he supposed to be the main boss? He never met him, but he did hear the name mentioned a few times. As he looked at his father, he could tell that he was very excited. Perhaps he was nervous as well, but his father always had a tendency of masking certain emotions. That was probably why he did the same thing when his mother died.

"Excellent," Jason acknowledged. "It seems that we will finally have the break-through we need. However, prepare for any back-ups should anything go wrong."

"Already done, sir," Zera replied with a wide smile. "Let me tell that it is an ho-"

Before she could finish, loud yelling was heard outside the room just before the doors burst open: "I AM SO LATE!" A scientist with red hair just passed his ears ran inside.

Jackson immediately turned toward him. "ISAAC! YOU FOOL! WATCH WHERE YOU-"

Before he could finish, the scientist known as Isaac didn't watch where he was going and slammed into Jackson who was trying to scramble away. The collision forced the can of juice to fly out of the boy's hand to his shock, and since the contents weren't finished, they spilled on the floor. To Zera, Jason and Jackson's shock, the juice was spilled next to the wires that connected to a power converter. This was not good. As the converter fizzled from reacting with the liquid, Zera glared at Isaac. "You FOOL!"

"Don't yell at me! The brat was in my way!" Isaac argued.

Jackson kept his eyes glued to power converter which sent electrical energy straight to the centrifuge. This was not looking good, and it was probably his fault. He should have gotten away in time or better yet, waited outside.

"RETREAT! EVERYONE!" Jason yelled as the electrical energy from the wires made it to the centrifuge. They were so close to a break-through. Why was this happening now?! At least they had back-ups, right? However, as the centrifuge started to overheat from the energy, the scientists quickly cleared the room in a panic, knowing what was going to happen. He turned to Zera. "Take my son out of here. Hurry!"

Jackson held his head in shame. This was his fault, he just knew it. Before he could think of anything else, Zera quickly took his hand and fled the room. "What about Dad?!" He protested. Jason had run out the door, heading toward the emergency alarm.

"Don't worry about him for now, Jackson," Zera replied as she ran through the door, dodging the onslaught of the rushing scientists while glancing at the boy from over her shoulder, "your safety is the most important thing."

Jackson looked down. This was his fault and he knew it. Now everyone was going to die; the work that his father had devoted two years of his life to was going up in smoke. He will probably be dead too. Lowering his head, he wanted to cry, but if his father were here, he would tell him the same thing he told him when his mother died:

" _Remember that no matter what, boys shouldn't cry. Emotions only hold you back. You need to focus on building your strength to move forward, rather than be weighed down by such petty feelings."_

Zera frowned at the boy's forlorn face. "Just so you know..." She faced forward once again as she continued to run, her voice escalated due to the loudness of the alarms that were now going off. "It's not your fault. So don't you _dare_ blame yourself," She looked back at him, "You hear me?!" Jackson looked back at her with widened eyes. "You didn't move in time, and you're still a kid! Remember that...if anyone tells you otherwise, you got that?!"

Jackson gave a wordless nod. Ever since he met this woman, she always seemed like a motherly role model to him, and he always looked up to her. However, the pang in his heart wouldn't go away. His father was somewhere; he can't lose him yet! He looked around for his father among the crowd, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. He looked ahead of him to find that he and Zera were almost at the exit. Knowing that he didn't want to be left behind, he broke free from her grip and ran toward the room his father was in. "JACKSON!" Zera screamed. "GET BACK HERE!"

Sure enough, he saw him outside the large room, seemingly speaking into his cell phone. What was he thinking of doing?!

"Daddy!" Jackson screamed as he ran toward his father. "We have to go! Daddy!"

When Jason looked up, he was furious. "JACKSON! I TOLD YOU TO GO WITH ZERA!"

Taken aback by his father's yelling, Jackson yelled: "But I don't want to leave you! I don't want to lose you!"

Hearing this was enough to warm the father's cold heart, even just for a moment. However, he needed his son to be alive more than anything. It broke his heart that things had to be this way – first his mother and now this...and they had run out of time. Jason barely had the time to pull his son around the corner so that they could dive underneath the table so that Jackson could be completely covered. The phone was covered with the boy's shirt, so that it also was safe. At that second, the centrifuge exploded, sending a shockwave blast throughout the entire building.

* * *

 _*Present*_

Crow's eyes opened immediately and sat up in his bed. He could feel every core of his being shake as he relived that horrible memory. It was a miracle that he even survived in the first place, but it was thanks to his father's burnt corpse and the table that he was barely able to stay alive. Igneel had arrived not too long after the explosion, discovered Crow's half-dead body, and took him out of there for testing and hospitalization. He had been living with the former chairman ever since and had served under him to repay his gratitude.

He looked out the window, wondering how things would have been if he left with Zera. Would things be the same? Or would they be completely different? He was sure that she had died in the explosion like everyone else, but if she were here right now, boy would he get a scolding. It did not matter right now. Rather she's dead or not, that's part of life. Besides, that was ten years ago, and he had more pressing matters to attend to: like today's "lottery".

It was an event that the subjects were looking forward to. If they got their name called, then they would no longer be locked up with the others and gain their freedom, as they were told. He put his usual gear on and left the room, heading towards where the subjects were kept. There were other soldiers that were accompanying him, such as Malik and Elfman, of course.

Lyon sat in his room. So today is the day, huh? This happened once every three months where subjects would be getting their names called just so that they can be given their "freedom." There was a time where the bluenette would look forward to his name being called. Then when time went on, he could see through their evil ways. They wouldn't let them go just like that. Something else must be happening to the subjects who have been called, something vile.

The sound of his lock was heard, and he stood up. _Time to go,_ he thought to himself as he waited for a soldier to open the door.

When he saw Crow, the adrenaline within him rose. This bastard was in charge of not only abducting him but shooting his family as well. He clenched his teeth so hard that he could feel a sharp pain on both sides of his skull. Should he try to punch him just so that he could flee? That was what the fight-or-flight response was asking. However, even if he tried to attack the soldier, he would be apprehended as fast as he could run. He knew how highly skilled and trained these soldiers were; it was like they were almost inhuman. That level of strength far exceeded his own, so he just stood still while glaring into space.

Without a word, Crow shackled his wrists together and dragged him out of his room by the arm. On the way toward the designated area, he had another boy by his other arm – Eve.

"Oh I hope my name is called," Eve wished. Suddenly, the grip on his arm tightened and he winced with pain while making pained noises.

"I believe I told you to be quiet," Crow growled as he continued to drag him.

 _Idiot,_ Lyon remarked in his head, referring to Eve.

The subjects and soldiers all gathered in the room where they met before shortly after Gray escaped. It was the same routine: the subjects were all shackled to the metal tables that spread across the room, and the soldiers surrounded them while keeping watch on their activities and expressions. Now, all what needed to happen was the arrival of Natsu and Zeref. Lyon dreaded it. Who was going to be called?

Whispers buzzed through the room – some were full of excitement, others were full of fear. Will they be called? And what would happen if they were called? Would they be free to go back to their families? That's what they were promised. The boys who were excited imagined their families' faces when they returned to them, and the lives they would live right afterwards. Lyon seemed to be the only one who was skeptic. If this were to happen to the girls in their section...

Suddenly, the room immediately went silent when the Dragneel brothers walked in. Like it was last time, the air was so thick and tense, and the boys immediately hid their faces to avoid eye contact.

Lyon, however, was brave enough to look at them, and he noticed something different this time: they were accompanied by a girl with long, dark blue hair. He had seen her once or twice before. Who was she? Another scientist? She seemed a little young to be a scientist. Natsu, of course, was glowing as though he just had the most amazing sex. The subject just scoffed in disgust.

The blue-haired girl looked up at Natsu. "Natsu-nii-chan, why am I here?" She asked.

"Aren't you the least bit interested in what goes on, Wendy?" Natsu asked her. "After all, you are a Dragneel and a part of our family. So it is imperative that you watch and learn." Wendy just looked back at the subjects and sighed. Unlike her brothers, she never wanted to take part in what they do, even though they continue to coax her into doing it. She was afraid of what would happen if she would ever defy them.

"Good morning, boys," Zeref greeted, and the boys immediately echoed the same greeting back to him, not wanting to be punished in any way. "This is the moment that you've all been waiting for. The testing had come back with excellent results, and the following are now free to go back to their families." This made the subjects look at the elder Dragneel with anticipation. Natsu just smirked at their reaction.

Lillian, who had also accompanied the Dragneels, gave Zeref her clipboard so that he could read out the names. "And they are: Eve Tearm...Ren Akatsuki...Hibiki Lates...Yuka Suzuki," the aforementioned boys smiled happily as their shackles were unlocked. Lyon closed his eyes as he tried to tune out the excitement as a couple more names were called. _They're all idiots_ , Lyon remarked in his head.

As Zeref read a couple more names, Natsu raised an eyebrow at Lyon. Part of him believed that he was hoping for his name to be called, but with the way he was acting lately, especially when Gray ran away, he raised a lot of suspicion. He turned to Malik and whispered, "You have a job to do."

Malik looked at Natsu and gave him his full-undivided attention. "What do you want?"

"Keep an eye on that boy," the pinkette ordered. "He might be up to something. If he does something out of the ordinary, bring him to me."

Malik raised an eyebrow. He knew that his superior was suspicious of the boy ever since Gray escaped. Now he was stuck on babysitting duty? Then again, even though he answered to Kietsu, he had no choice but to answer to the Dragneel's demand. "Yes, sir," he replied.

"And that is all," Zeref finished much to the room's dismay. "Don't worry...you will get your chance soon. This means that you just have a bit more testing to go through. Elfman and Riza, bring the mentioned boys to me. The rest of you, escort the other boys to their cells." The soldiers nodded as they did as they were told. Wendy just sighed as she left the room, having been excused by her brothers.

Malik walked toward Lyon, unshackled him from the table and escorted him back to his cell. "Malik," Lyon trailed off.

Malik gripped his escrima stick as he glared at Lyon. "I believe you were told to be quiet."

The threatening gesture didn't bother the boy at all. After all, with the beatings that he had received at the hands of the soldiers in the past, this was to be expected. "I must ask...what is going to happen to the other boys?"

"They will be brought to their respective homes, so they should be none of your concern," The mutant answered. Lyon made a disappointed noise in his mouth. He thought that Malik was probably different from the other soldiers, but apparently they were the same as ever, always following blindly to their leaders like sheep.

Once they got to his cell, the soldier lightly shoved him in, locked the door and stood next to the door. He took a small, hand-held monitor from his utility belt and turned it on. This was another invention of Natsu's. It was so that soldiers on guard would monitor the subjects' movements without having to be inside the cell. Even still, Lyon could not shake that feeling inside him. He wondered what would happen to the boys now that their names were called.

* * *

Natsu walked toward the girls' area. There was one idea he had in mind that would enable Gray's capture to run smoothly, and that idea just happened to be where he was going. He stopped in front of the room and, using his master key, opened the door.

A little girl no older than the age of twelve, looked up in fear and backed away from him. She was quite petite, with raven locks going well past her ears. Her blood froze when her dark blue eyes met Natsu's. What was he going to do to her? He bent toward her, reaching out her hand. She immediately closed her eyes as she shivered. "P-Please..." She begged softly.

To her surprise, Natsu gingerly touched the top of her head, and she opened her eyes in confusion. "There, there, you know I would never hurt you," the older man soothed. This calmed the girl's nerves, though she was still very confused as to why he was being nice to her. "You understand that your brother is gone."

The girl looked at him, the fear returning. Her brother? What did they do?! Is he...dead?!

Sensing her worry, Natsu continued, "Don't worry. He's alive. He just ran off, only to be captured again."

"C-captured?" The girl stammered. "Why would they do that to him?! I want him back!" She resumed her crying, only for it to be louder this time.

Taking pity on the poor girl, Natsu took her into her arms and patted her head. "There, there," he soothed, "The rebels are just evil bastards who want to take people hostage. However, my men will get him back. Would you...like to help them?"

"Me?" The girl sobbed.

The pinkette smiled. "Of course. I know that Gray would listen to you. He still pines for his little sister after all."

"Wh-what do I do?" Luna asked timidly as she once again looked up at the man consoling her.

The smile never left Natsu's face as he wiped her tears away. "Just go with them, my dear girl, and they will take care of the rest."

At that time, Lisanna was waiting outside the door as per her boyfriend's orders. He had asked her to take Luna to the army barracks to prepare her for the coming raid. The door opened and Natsu walked out with Luna. "You know what to do, Lisanna."

The assassin smirked as she kissed her boyfriend on the lips. "I'll never fail you, sir," she replied before she turned and walked away with the girl.

Natsu lightly smacked her ass as she walked away - Luna of course never noticed this – and then his face darkened as he frowned. Being nice sickened him, but he _loved_ being manipulative...and if his men followed his orders directly and successively, then he will resume his treatment on both children. The one problem was rebels, and that's what irked him the most.

* * *

At the rebel base, Kagari was walking toward Takuma's room to check on him. When he walked in yesterday, his brother was still out and not awake yet. He could understand, especially with how harshly his twin was beaten. This wasn't the first time that he nearly lost his twin either. Perhaps his wounds need a bit more time to heal.

"Ichijo!"

Kagari froze mid-step when he heard his surname being called. The barking made him cringe, and he resisted all urge to turn around and punch his superior in the face. However, he knew he had to push away any ill feelings aside if he wanted to cooperate. "What is it, Cynthia?" He asked.

"Training ASAP! Meet me in the training room pronto," Cynthia demanded.

This would probably mean he would have to check up on Takuma another time. He's probably still unconscious anyway. "Yes ma'am," the soldier replied with a salute before he headed toward the training area.

When he got there, those were still healthy – Levy, Sting, Dan, Roku, Aiden, Sarah, Mirajane, Keria, Kunou, Jellal, Erza, and Raiden – were standing in front of Cynthia. Gin was monitoring Gray and the rest of the injured while Minerva was manning the monitor systems. "Line up, Ichijo! Move it!" Cynthia snapped as she clapped her hands.

Erza raised her hand. "Excuse me, Cynthia. With all due respect, Kagari is supposed to be injured."

Cynthia glared at Erza. "Well excuse _me,_ Scarlet, but if your brother would be strong enough to pull a gun on you then he's strong enough for training." The red-head just silenced after that, not wanting to argue with her superior. Without a word, Kagari jumped in line and faced his superior.

"Now...you all know why you were brought here today?" Cynthia asked as she paced back and forth in front of the line.

"Training, right?" Aiden asked.

"That is what you told us," Sarah added.

"Do you know _why_ I wanted to do group training?" Cynthia pressed on, still pacing among the group. "Some of you know the reason why as per the incident from yesterday."

Erza looked down. She knew exactly why Cynthia had ordered them all to come down, and she can admit that she acted out of line. However, Gray was scratched by a zombie, and that was enough to turn anyone into one of those...things. She had seen her parents turn, and it was a repulsive sight. She didn't want the same thing to happen again. Looking at Kagari, she remembered his promise. What if Kagari was right? What if Gray could be one of those rarities? The chances of that happening are one in one hundred, so it's only a very slim chance. If Kagari is wrong, then he will put the young boy out of his misery. This was why Erza hated this world. Anyone could turn if they're not careful.

Then she looked at Jellal. He was only looking out for her well-being. Sure, he did act rash, but he knows what's best for other people, despite his attitude. The two did grow up together after all, so she understands him the most.

However, could that also be her downfall? Aiden seemed to think so. He did not want to voice his opinions on her tastes, because she would stubbornly deny it. He had seen guys like Jellal, and he did not trust them one bit. Guys like Jellal will never change, no matter if you think otherwise. That is what he always believed.

The second-in-command stopped pacing and glared at the others in front of her. "I can't _hear_ you, maggots!" She snapped, growing impatient by the lack of response.

Raiden stepped forward, "Some people acted out of line, so you want to punish us as a group, ma'am!" He stepped back.

"You were half-right," Cynthia corrected. She glared at Erza, Jellal and Kagari. "Some of you _did_ act out of line, and it seems that you have all forgotten the importance of group training. So now it's time to take a crash course on how to act properly as a team." She turned her back and walked forward a bit to pull something out. "For this exercise, you're all required to work as a cohesive unit. Try to run past me to ring this bell. Pass this training, and you will once again go out in the front lines. Fail...and clean this entire area with your fucking spit and toothbrushes."

Dan made a disgusted face at Roku. "She's really harsh, isn't she?" He whispered.

"I agree," Roku agreed with a nod.

"So let's begin!" She shouted as she stood behind the bell. "Come at me," she narrowed her eyes, "if you dare."

Everyone took a ready position. Jellal smirked and ran right ahead toward the bell. Aiden watched in amusement. This idiot seemed to forget the rules of this exercise. To prove his point, Cynthia quickly elbowed him in the jaw, causing him to stagger back with a grunt. Then she grabbed his wrist, sent a palm-strike into his chest. Jellal keeled over slightly, which gave his superior an opening to grab his head and DDT him to the ground. He hit the ground with a yelp, and Cynthia stood up over him. "Are you finished yet, Fernandez?"

Jellal put a hand on his head and stood up slowly, swerving slightly due to the blow that she made to his head. "Never in a million years," he answered painfully.

"If you think that you can continue, then back in line," Cynthia ordered, "Otherwise, there is a medic that's willing to look at your wounds."

As Jellal walked back to his spot in line, Aiden tried to hold back a laugh, but he was elbowed in the ribs by Sarah. "Ow," He hissed as he rubbed his sore spot.

"This is training," she whispered, "the weak aren't meant to be laughed at." Her brother nodded in agreement.

"Sarah Hinote makes a valid point," Cynthia agreed. She looked at rest of the group. "Anyone else would like to take a crack at ringing this bell?"

Dan looked at Roku and nodded; Roku nodded back, and both faced forward. They both ran toward Cynthia, who waited for them to approach her – eyes not leaving them for a moment. Once they were close enough, they immediately ran on either side of her. She clothes-lined Roku immediately, sending him flying back, and then she sweep-kicked Dan's legs, tripping him. However, Dan rolled through with a summersault and kept running. However, the lieutenant was not through yet. While she was down, she took out a dart gun and shot Dan in the leg.

"AGH!" Dan screamed as he immediately knelt forward, holding his leg.

"Dan!" Roku yelled as he ran toward his friend. However, his leg was hook-grabbed by his superior's leg and as she pulled, he lost his balance and fell forward. Cynthia let go and, using the dart gun, aimed it at the back of his head.

"Click, boom; you're dead," She snarled.

Roku growled in frustration as he stood up and helped Dan to his feet. "Are you insane?! You could have killed Dan!"

"First of all, how naïve can you get, soldier?!" Cynthia snapped as she pointed to the dart. When Roku looked, he realized that the dart was completely made of rubber and just stuck to Dan's leg. This sudden realization made him sweat-drop out of embarrassment. "Second of all, you were left with _too_ many openings!" She looked at the rest of the group. "Raiden!"

Raiden saluted as he stood at attention, "Ma'am!"

"Explain what you learned in this demonstration!" She ordered.

Raiden put his arm down and answered, "First, the enemy will take advantage of any opening that you may expose. Second, the enemy comes first, which means helping your friend should come after the enemy has been dealt with…unless there's another nearby to defend said person. Third, it is important to work as a team rather than work as individuals!"

Kunou looked at Raiden. For an idiot, he seemed to know his stuff about combat. Why was that the case, he wondered.

"Exactly!" Cynthia replied. She looked at the two. "Back in line!"

Dan took the rubber dart off his leg and walked back to the line. He couldn't believe that he screamed after being hit by a rubber dart. The others will never let him live that down. Roku grumbled at how much of a fool he made himself out to be. Noticing this, Dan turned to his friend. "Roku, you need to calm down or we will never pass this training. Focus your mind…for Cana's sake."

The brunette immediately froze and tensed at his friend's words. How dare he bring up Cana and at a moment like this?! The reason why he was unable to relax was because his sister had recently been killed, and that pissed him off! However, he relaxed when he realized the reality of it all. The group was training to win this war, this seemingly never-ending war for survival. If he fought like this, then he will never survive. He will be dead for sure.

This realization made him think about Takuma…how he was currently in a coma. Takuma nearly lost his life because he acted in sheer anger, not clearing his mind whatsoever. Sure it was understandable, but if Erza, Laxus, Jellal, Aiden and Sarah never showed up when they did, they would lose two people instead of one on that horrible day. That cannot happen to him! If it did, then Cana will never forgive him. He decided to live for both himself and Cana, then later he will break Takuma out of his misery.

He stood in line and took a ready position. Dan smiled at him before taking a ready position as well.

"Anyone else?!" Cynthia barked. "You know you can go up as a group!" She may have bit off more than she could chew when she said that, but the whole purpose of this exercise was to work as a group, and if someone would ring the bell, then so be it.

Sarah looked around at everyone and nodded before looking back at the front. With a beckoning gesture that had them all huddle in a circle; she whispered a plan to the group that seemed to catch everyone's attention. Cynthia waited until she was finished, preparing to make her own strategies to counteract the group's.

Hearing the idea, Kagari was unsure if it will truly work. Cynthia did make quick work out of Jellal, Dan and Roku, and he wondered what will happen if the second-in-command was to face a large group. After all, with the way she was fighting, she seemed to be from a major military background where this was all a cake-walk to her. However, if Cynthia wanted them all to work together, then he was willing to take any risk.

Once the discussion finished, everyone resumed his and her place in line and took a ready stance. The high-commanding officer in front of them smirked. This was going to be fun, and she could taste it. "Begin!" She yelled.

Dan, Roku, Raiden and Kagari ran toward Cynthia first. The woman waited, thinking that how stupid they would be. Suddenly Dan punched her, which she blocked, her eyes widening from the surprise turn of events. They must be thinking some kind of plan. Roku kneed her, aiming for the kidney. She bent forward, but blocked an incoming uppercut courtesy of Dan. She grabbed his wrist and swung him around to block an incoming elbow strike done by Raiden, and then blocked a roundhouse kick done by Kagari. She shoved Dan into Kagari, but ducked a high tornado kick made by Roku.

Watching this, Sarah smirked for it was now time for the second part of her plan. She nodded towards Kunou, Erza, and Mirajane, who ran toward the left of Cynthia. Then she turned around and gestured toward Sting, Levy and Keria, who ran toward the right.

Since Cynthia was facing toward the right, she blocked Caleb's punch, grabbed his wrist and then face-palmed his jaw. Then she did a back-kick towards Raiden's gut, knocking him back. Roku executed a flying axe-kick, which she blocked with her forearm. She grabbed his leg and then flipped him over her shoulder. Roku landed on all-fours, but this enabled Kunou to step on his back and push off, going for a superman punch. Noticing it, she quickly grabbed his punch, but suddenly but kneed in the stomach by Erza, forcing her to bend over with a grunt and letting go of Kunou's leg. Erza quickly threw an uppercut punch at Cynthia's jaw, causing her to stagger back.

Suddenly, a whip wrapped around Cynthia's leg and pulled her towards the person who lashed the weapon – Keria. "Go now, Levy!"

"Right!" Levy responded as she headed towards the bell.

"NO!" Cynthia lunged toward Levy only to be met with a pair of legs wrapping around her neck and her wrists were grabbed. Blinking in shock, she looked at who the legs belonged to, and that was Erza. Sting twisted her legs behind her back, rendering the woman immobile.

While everyone was busy with the one guarding their target, Sarah had Aiden go around the back to ring the bell from behind. As for Jellal, he just grumbled while he was forced to stay behind. "Too many people, Jellal," Sarah shrugged with a smile.

At the same time, Mirajane stepped toward the left side of the bell. Once the positions were made, all three struck the bell twice simultaneously.

Cynthia was immediately let go as she stood dumbfounded to how well the group gelled well together. As Keria removed the whip from her leg, she gave Cynthia a quick grope on her ass and said, "Well it looks like that we can work as a team after all."

The act made Cynthia twitch as she stood up. "Yes, that's right... That was quite an elaborate plan you made."

Sarah smiled triumphantly, "You learn from the best."

Cynthia nodded in agreement. "You're all dismissed. However..." She glared at Jellal.

"Looks like someone is stuck on cleaning duty," Aiden whispered to Levy, who nodded affirmatively.

"While everyone is taking a break, you will be cleaning this entire area," She ordered, "I want to see it sparkling by the end of the day. Move your ass, soldier!" Jellal grumbled once again as he went to find the cleaning supplies.

Aiden walked out of the room with his hands in his pockets. "Time for a smoke, I guess," He muttered to himself.

Pleased with how things were, Kagari decided to go to Takuma's room to check on him. It has been a couple of days, so hopefully he would have woken up by now. Then again, with how bad his injuries were, he wouldn't be surprised if his brother wasn't awake yet. Only time will tell.

Mirajane left the room as well, heading toward the medical barracks. She wanted to know if Laxus was doing alright. Once she arrived, she saw Gin sitting in a chair while sleeping. He must have worked tirelessly to keep the injured as stable as possible. With medical staff in short supply, this must have been difficult for him.

Not wanting to wake him, she silently walked toward her husband's room. Surely he would still be unconscious, based on the amount of injuries he sustained but she still wanted to check on him regardless. Once she opened the door, she peered inside. "Laxus?"

She didn't hear anything. Perhaps he was still sleeping. She lit up a lantern and made her way toward his bed. "Laxus," She softly whispered while she shone the lantern to the bed. To her dismay, he wasn't in his bed. Worry and panic arose within her. Where could he be? Did he just wake up...or did he die and his body was exposed of. She hurried out of the room. _Laxus!_ She screamed in her head. If anything happened...

She made her way toward Gin and was about to wake him up when she saw a familiar silhouette in the lantern-light – a tall man with spiky hair and broad shoulders. There was one man that could fit that description. She shone the lantern towards the man standing in front of the quarantine, its occupant asleep and safe from any kind of harm.

"You know you don't have to light that lantern in a dimly lit room like this, you silly girl," the voice of her husband calmed her worries. She blew out the lantern, set it down and quickly stepped toward him.

He was heavily bandaged at his torso and head. His purple, fur-lined coat was draped over his bare shoulders like a cape while he held onto a cane for support. The way he talked, Mira could tell that he had the voice of someone who was either in pain, just woke up, or a mixture of both.

"Laxus," She whispered as she edged closer toward him. Every fiber of her being wanted to drag him back to bed, but her gentle spirit urged her not to. Surely he was out here for a reason. "What are you doing out of bed?"

Laxus's eyes softened as he continued to stare at the quarantine door. If there was any time to tell her what was on her mind, it would be now. However, this pressure...this guilt...was weighing on him that it was difficult for him to do so. He couldn't find the right words to say, and if she knew what really happened out there, would she forgive him? Would their marriage still stay?

Then again, she was a scientist at around the same time as he was a soldier so surely she would have some kind of idea. She would understand that he was only following orders.

She placed her hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Laxus looked at Gin's sleeping form and then back at his wife. "I...need to talk to you about something."

From the tone in his voice, she could tell something was wrong. "Alright, well you can tell me after I tuck you in, alright?" Laxus nodded as he let her take him to bed.

Once he carefully lay down and set the cane aside, Mira tucked him in and lay next to him. Laxus put his arm around her and started to explain, "You know how I was a soldier and you were a scientist...and we were both working there?"

Mira nodded, "Yes, I do. Though I never had much of an idea of what you were doing out there."

With a shaky sigh, Laxus continued, "There's something...you need to know about myself...and about Gray..."

* * *

And FINALLY that's that chapter done! I apologize for the long wait as I had so much going on. Was it worth the wait? Please let me know in the response below! Another flashback is coming your way but there will be more action next chapter. I promise you. See you next time!


	8. Even Lightning Struggles

**Hey everyone! Here is chapter 8 for you guys, and it's here a bit quicker than usual. However, I still had a tough time with it, especially in the flashbacks. ALSO THIS CONTAINS A GOREY EXECUTION SCENE! So apologies in advance if it seemed disturbing. That was what I was going for.**

 **In any case, hope you enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Even Lightning Struggles**

Mirajane frowned while she looked at him. So there was a secret that he kept from her. She knew of the basics of what he did while he was out there, but she wasn't really allowed to delve into the details. So she didn't entirely blame him for the things he did. After all, he was under orders, and she had her own duties to fulfill as a scientist at Dragon Corporation.

Experimenting on the children there was what she didn't like, and the purpose wasn't only to look for the cure. There were other programs that the company wanted to try – such as turning human beings into weapons and forcing them to kill and capture. This has been going on for years, even when Igneel was overseeing everything. Laxus was no exception. She was aware that he was part of this program, but she wasn't entire sure about the reasons why.

Laxus took in a deep sigh and looked at her. "Let me start from the beginning. I was an orphan...and my health wasn't all that great. With nowhere to turn, my grandfather took me to Dragon Corporation to get the treatment I deserved. What he didn't know...were the consequences that rose. In this same program, I met Jackson Crow, and the two of us were given experimental serums that would make us stronger. Igneel...treated us like sons, but in return, we had to use our potential for the greater good of Dragon Corporation."

Listening to this part of the story, Mirajane nodded in understanding. Igneel, despite his faults, was a good man. How did things take a dark turn? Why did his sons defect away from his vision of the company? And that horrible thing that she saw...why would they keep it hidden away where not even their employees would know about it? She continued to listen to what he had to say.

Taking in another sigh, her husband went on, "we trained extensively to keep our newfound abilities under control. We were given several codenames. While his main codename was The Reaper's Hand, mine was The Lightning Dragon."

"Why were you given these codenames?" Mira inquired.

"Because...they reflected who we were as soldiers and our skills. I was given the name Lightning Dragon because my movements were quick and precise. His well...simply because he's deadly."

Mira could only agree to that. After all, Crow killed without remorse and with him on the wrong side, it was like he was an obstacle keeping them from their main goal. "What about Gray and his family?"

Laxus went silent for a moment. "Jackson, a handful of soldiers, and I were stationed in Ishvan...with Zeref leading us. He was a silver-tongued liar...but it was necessary to get the mission done. If any of the parents resisted, they were shot on the spot, then their houses would be burned with the bodies still inside. Sometimes they were sacrificed to the zombies if a horde would ever arrive."

Mirajane tensed. "You...didn't kill his parents...did you?"

Laxus shook his head. "They were actually one of the well-behaved ones. Although...I could tell that they weren't very happy with the fact that their children were going to be taken to a place where they would be treated as objects for experimentation. Jackson and I waited until any of them would fall out of line, but surprisingly, they didn't."

"What really happened to his parents?"

Taking in another sigh, Laxus turned to her. "It was at least a week after we started the experimentation process with the children. The first trial was finished, and they were taking a break to be tested for physical endurance and intelligence. Meanwhile, in Ishvan, Silver held a rally to take the children back. It was admirable...but stupid... Zeref found out right away."

 _ ***Flashback ~ 4 years ago***_

A mob had gathered outside, armed with pitchforks, torches, guns, and any other weapon that they could find. They had already overtaken the guards while a few were sacrificed, and now they were making a beeline towards the headquarters. Many of the citizens within the city of Tokyo hid in their houses while watching the army walk through, not even daring to join them and sneering in disgust at their "stupidity".

Once they gathered in front of the headquarters they were met with a crowd of soldiers, and Zeref was at the helm. Without hesitation, he ordered for an open fire. The soldiers immediately carried out their orders, firing at the mob. While many tried to run, most of them were already slaughtered or severely injured by the bullets. However, Silver and Mika didn't back down. Even Lyon's parents, Alicia and Matthew, remained standing, among several other brave men and women willing to stand their ground.

Alicia was a woman of light blue hair held back in a ponytail and black eyes. Two locks of hair hung down on either side of her face as they partially covered a pair of red and gold earrings that hung from her ears. She had a slender body and wore a laced, blue spotted shirt and red pants. It was clear that she was rather busty, and her hair travelled down to her waist. Her beauty was so immense that people would have thought she was a princess.

Her husband, Matthew was beside her. A tall man with a muscular build, he had gray eyes and black tousled hair that framed his face. The middle part of his bangs seemed to go slightly passed his eyes while the entirety of his bangs seemed to form an M-shape, revealing his thin-lined eyebrows. His eyes were in slits and there was a cold frown on his face. From his black suit and tie, one would simply view him as a detective or respectable man. A light-brown holster rested on his hip.

Beside them was a furious man with long red hair. Long bangs fell just passed his blue-green eyes as cold as steel and the rest of his hair fell to his shoulders. Blood caked his chest and face as he glared at Zeref and the rest of the army. The dead body of his diseased wife lay at his feet, and he was hell-bent on avenging her death. "Say the word...Silver..." He snarled as he tightened his grip on the hilt of his blade so hard that his fingers would split apart at any moment.

"Momentarily, Andrew," Silver answered.

"How admirable of you to stand your ground after many of your brothers and sisters have been slain," Zeref remarked, "but it ends here." He prepared to give the signal while the soldiers on either side of him prepared for battle.

Silver smirked. "Couldn't have said it better myself."

While this exchange was taking place, someone at the back flashed a light three times and arrows rained down from the sky, along with sniper fire. Zeref looked up in shock while a few soldiers received the projectiles in their chests and fell. _Very clever,_ Laxus thought to himself as he also looked up, _but not clever enough._

The archers and snipers who fired their respective projectiles were immediately fired at by more guards that had just entered the scene. Some also got their throats slit and necks broken by a few men and women that sneaked behind up behind them.

A few members of the group facing Zeref turned sharply around at the sound of painful yelling and shots being fired. The opposing leader smirked maliciously. "I will always be a few steps ahead of you. Pity."

"Pity it is," Silver growled. He took a deep breath. This was the moment of truth for all of them, and even though the odds were against them, giving up was out of the question. The time...was now. "Men...women," He spoke among his neighbours, "Charge in and fight until your last breath!" The rebels acknowledged their leader's words and charged in.

"Kill them!" Zeref barked, "But leave the leaders alive! They will be arrested and publicly executed for their crimes! Get them now!" With a battle cry, his soldiers ran toward the rebels.

Both groups clashed with a thunderous roar, and the deadly sound of metal hitting flesh and metal was heard throughout the intense battle. Laxus, Crow and Elfman took their positions in front of Zeref as Mika, Alicia, Matthew, Andrew, and Silver made a beeline towards their leader, fighting through the crowd as they made their way to him.

Suddenly the women were ambushed by three of Zeref's female warriors known as Dimaria, Brandish, and Sayla, from all sides. The two stood back to back while they fended off their attackers, just narrowly blocking their attacks. However, because of the numbers game, Alicia had multiple stab wounds due to Sayla's sai attacks as she blocked a deadly blow given by Dimaria's daggers. Mika, on the other hand, was able to dodge Brandish's gauntlet punch, only to kick her hard in the stomach. Even still, that did not stop the busty greenette for she continued her assaults.

As the women continued to fight for their lives, Elfman, Crow and Laxus continued to hold their ground while the men ran straight toward them. Since their orders were to not kill them, Laxus shot both Andrew and Matthew in the knees using a hidden gun strapped to his wrist. Both tried to roll away, but still garnered a deep gash on their legs. When Andrew tried to stand up, he was met with a baton to the knees by Elfman; the red-head yelled in pain while his knees were dislocated.

Silver ran up, stepped onto Matthew's back and leapt towards Laxus, aiming to shoot at his head with his gun. Before he could do so, the blonde grabbed his wrist and deflected the shot onto the ground before power-bombing the rebel leader onto the ground. Using his strength, Silver gritted his teeth as he struggled against his adversary. "Move, you piece of shit," he snarled before he was met with a hard punch against the face.

"Sorry," Laxus apologized as he punched him two more times, "but orders are orders. I cannot allow you to see your son. You have committed a grave crime against your peers and must be punished for it."

With a frustrated growl, Silver bashed his head against Laxus' forehead, doing a bit of damage to his own head in the process, and then kneed him hard in the stomach. This forced the blonde to roll off of his opponent. Both men stood up, and the gray-hair spat a bit of blood to the side.

As Silver's hand went straight for his hilt, Laxus decided to do the same thing. As he looked around, he noticed that Matthew and Crow were deep in combat and so were Andrew and Elfman, despite the former's injury. With this determination, he was sure that Silver was no different. Also, he could use the extra enjoyment. A large grin spread across his face as he stared down his opponent, "It's been a while since my blade has eaten. It hungers...for the blood of my enemy."

"Good to know," Silver retorted sarcastically.

Both of them ran toward each other and drew their blades in a quick motion when they got close enough to each other. Then both men clashed aggressively with one another. Laxus rapidly slashed in various directions, all being blocked by Silver.

They slashed again at each other and blocked, going into a stalemate that lasted for a couple of seconds before rotating their blades so that they pointed to the ground. Laxus stepped on the dull edge of Silver's blade, holding it down so that he could free his sword and stab at his opponent's eye. Silver moved his head to the side, getting his cheek cut. Using his free arm, he wrapped it around Laxus's arm and threw him over his shoulder, freeing his sword in the process.

The soldier hit the ground and ran back to his opponent, going for a thrust at his back, but the rebel pivoted to the side and smashed his hilt against the blonde's arm. Laxus grunted in pain and was met with an elbow to the face, which caused him to slide back. The sadistic smile never wavered as he charged toward his opponent once more and slashed five more times. Silver blocked them all, but Laxus took his hilt and struck it into his opponent's ribs, causing him to yell in response. Then Laxus put his palm on Silver's forehead and shoved him violently to the ground, using both the palm and the hilt.

Silver hit the ground with another yell, bringing up dirt as he slid a little bit. His gun was separated from him in the process. Laxus jumped into the air and went for a downward strike. Realizing this right away, Silver held up his arm as he stabbed his sword through his opponent's shoulder, gritting his teeth as the opposing blade was stabbed through his arm. The tip of Laxus's blade was just inches from Silver's eyes.

Realizing their predicament, Laxus pointed the small gun on his free wrist at his opponent's heart. "Your time...is up, Fullbuster..."

Silver smiled painfully as blood dripped from his lips. "Not...by a long shot." He kicked Laxus away from him and winced in pain as the opposing blade was ripped from his forearm. The soldier staggered back as Silver painfully stood up.

As Laxus looked at Silver, he started to question why he was so determined, if this is what having a son and daughter must feel like. His eyes drifted to Silver's wounded arm, caked in blood. If he loses blood because of this then it will be on Laxus, and that thought made the soldier very nervous. "Give up now, Fullbuster," He said. "I'm not supposed to kill you, and that arm can be tended to."

Silver just stubbornly spat to the side, shooting back, "As if I need _your_ charity! Either I get my little boy and girl back, or I die trying. Nothing else!" He ran towards Laxus, both hands on his hilt as he geared up for one final strike.

Shaking his head, the soldier knew that he had no other choice. He took out his taser gun. "You leave me no other choice then...," he mumbled as he took aim and fired at Silver's stomach, hitting his mark with precision just underneath his opponent's elbows. The older man was thrown back with a yell and hit the ground hard, letting go of his sword as it fell beside him. Then silence ensued.

 ***flashback ends***

Laxus took a pause and a deep breath while he waited for Mirajane to process this. He knew that she would probably think less of him after he explained to her what happened, and he dreaded to hear the next question:

"That doesn't explain what happened to them."

As he studied her face, he knew that she was glaring in front of her; that was not a good sign. Even the sound of her voice made him feel uneasy. After all, this wasn't the first time she was angry with him, but with the tone in her voice, he could sense the chip on her shoulder.

After he took a moment to process what to say next, he spoke up again, "Silver was out of it, and Dimaria and Sayla were already carrying the unconscious bodies of his wife and that other woman that was with her. From what the ladies had reported to Zeref, those women fought with every breath they had, but due to being outnumbered and outmatched, they could not get the job done. The same was said for Matthew and Andrew. While the other rebels were killed immediately, the five leaders were sentenced to death and were locked up in separate cells. Then...the next day...Zeref called for a crowd to meet in the city centre."

 ***Flashback resumes***

They all got his invitation – men, woman and children – and they all came to witness an event that was so traditional, so blood-chilling that it would force them to think twice before they think about committing the same crimes. Michael, Silver, Mika, Andrew and Alicia were tied up and forced on their knees, awaiting their cruel punishment. All of their injuries have been tended to and bandaged.

Some of the civilians pitied the five, some were happy and relieved that the five were getting what they deserved, but one thing was concerned – most of the people were scared...terrified even...of their own lives. The children took no exception to this. They huddled each other or their parents for protection and comfort. Some were just as happy as those adults who were the same. After all, the group of five were criminals in their eyes, and all criminals should be severely punished for their crimes no matter how horrifying it may be.

Yelling was heard amongst the crowd, courtesy of a few soldiers who had barked at the people to get out of Zeref's way. They immediately scrambled to the side and formed a path so that their leader can walk passed them. A smug look was on his face, and his eyes showed that he was waiting for this moment with full anticipation. The air was thick with tension as the ravenette walked by, and the five glared back at him.

As soon as Zeref made his way to the front, he turned to face the crowd. "Ladies, Gentleman, children – I have gathered you all here to remind you of what happens if you try to rebel against us. Children such as these 5 should be punished as I am sure I have told you time and time again. They are no better than the zombies that prey on your lives." The people trembled at the word. "They are no better than the criminals that prowl the streets. They could come in the night and murder you in your sleep."

Voices shouted among the crowd. "Kill them! Protect us, Zeref-sama! They're monsters!"

Andrew shook with anger. "Monsters? YOU are the monster, Zeref!"

Zeref smashed his knee into Andrew's face, breaking his nose. This garnered a cheer and clapping from the crowd and a yell from the prisoner being attacked. "As you have witnessed, all five of these people are scum. They're no better than the worms that live in the dirt...oh no, they are worse. Much worse." Silver closed his eyes to drown out the humiliation.

"Furthermore," Zeref continued, "They may look human, but they're cowards. Who here would love to see them executed for their actions?!" Half of the crowd cheered in response. "I repeat...WHO WOULD LOVE TO SEE THEM EXECUTED FOR THEIR ACTIONS?!" Zeref repeated; his eyes were bloodthirsty and his grin even more sadistic than before. This time, the entire crowd erupted in applause.

He turned towards the group. "Let's play a little game first. See if I can guess which one of you orchestrated the rebellion. Feel free to sell out each other."

"What's the point?" Alicia asked. "You're going to kill us anyway."

"That may be true," Zeref agreed, "but your death will be quick and painless with little to no torture."

"Go to hell!" Alicia retorted. Zeref nodded towards Crow, who took out his baton and bashed her in the head repeatedly.

"ALICIA!" Matthew screamed as he thrashed in his bonds, but Crow continued to relentlessly beat her, releasing large quantities of blood with every blow he took. Laxus closed his eyes. He could admit that even this disturbed him, but he knew that he couldn't do anything about it. Anyone who spoke up against Zeref's actions was prone to punishment; no matter how they felt.

After a couple of minutes, Crow stepped back and Alicia's lifeless body slumped forward. The others looked in intense horror as they shivered in terror at this awful scene, and Laxus opened his eyes again.

"Anyone else?" Zeref asked. "Please by all means...sell each other out."

"Ali...cia..." Silver muttered under his breath. Even Laxus could tell that he was struggling to keep his emotions in check. Mika, on the other hand, looked like she was about to throw up at the disgusting sight.

"You really are a bunch of pussies. NO ONE wants to participate in this little game? Should I choose who to kill next? Oh, and the next one whom I choose will have a death even WORSE than the blue-haired princess's."

Matthew growled at Zeref, who noticed him right away. "Got something to say, Vastia?"

The father of Lyon's voice shook as he snarled, "Your soul...is rotten to the core, Dragneel... I curse you...with every breath in my body...that your death w-"Matthew was immediately cut off when Crow took a dulled axe and hacked it through his skull. Zeref laughed as Crow repeated his actions and cheers were heard from the crowd. Even chanting joined in with the cheering.

Mika vomited every substance that her stomach held, crying as she did so. Silver clenched his teeth as he looked away. Who's next?

Crow finished the hacking, and blood and brains spewed from Matthew's skull. This was making the others very nervous. Someone was going to have to speak up, even if it meant ruining the honour that they had fought so hard for. While the temptation to do so was strong enough, the remaining three had to hold back as much as possible. What would happen if their children found out they had to sell out each other for a painless death?

"Anyone else want to speak out? You do realize that delaying the inevitable will just make it worse?" Zeref asked as he looked among the three. "Clock is ticking, you filthy rebels!"

Mika continued to cry as she violently shook. Laxus could tell that she was almost at her breaking point. When he looked at the others, he knew that they weren't too far behind. Who was going to crack first?

Zeref glared impatiently. "Fine then," he said, "since none of you idiots are going to speak up, then it's time for me to pick whomever." He took an escrima stick from Laxus and walked in front of them. "Eenie...meenie...miney...mo...catch a tiger...by the toe... If he hollers...let him go...eenie...meenie...miney..." He stopped in front of Mika, whose eyes widened with fear. The intense glare in Silver's eyes turned to fury as he was about to speak up. However, before he said anything, Zeref rammed the stick into Andrew's mouth, and finished, "Mo." Andrew screamed in agony as everything inside his head was being fried. Wisps of smoke could be seen escaping his ears, eyes and mouth.

When the elder Dragneel removed the stick in a slow motion, Andrew's eyes become partially black due to the electricity that burned his skull from within. "Aaand dead," Zeref spoke again and looked at Mika and Silver. "Only two remain, but I know that he wasn't the right answer. It has to be one of you two."

As Laxus watched this horrible game that that his superior was playing, he knew that he was toying with them. Of course he knew the right answer! Guessing the right answer at the start of it seemed to be so dull, especially for someone like him. The blonde looked at the remaining couple, who did whatever they could to retain their composure. _Just save yourself the agony and speak up already,_ he inwardly said as he looked at Silver. _You know it's the right thing to do, Silver._

"One more guess," Zeref said as he looked at the remaining couple. "Laxus!"

Laxus stepped up. "Yes sir," he answered.

"You're up next," he said.

The blonde soldier nodded as he took a bottle of kerosene and splashed it onto Mika. Then he grabbed a torch and lit it. Silver widened his eyes in shock and growled at Zeref. "Don't you dare, Zeref," he threatened.

Zeref laughed maliciously. "Or what? What can you _possibly_ do to stop me?!" He challenged. Even knowing that the elder Dragneel was right, Silver just continued growl at him. "That's what I thought," Zeref continued, "This is your last chance! You don't speak up, there's going to be some barbecue TONIGHT!" Laxus stepped closer.

Mika felt that she was losing all hope. It doesn't matter what will happen, and she started to accept that. She looked at Silver and smiled. "It's been nice knowing you…my dear Silver," she whispered. A tear slipped from her husband's eyes when he saw his wife's smile, a smile of a woman who had been shattered and lost the will to live. No, that was not the way to go just yet! Especially when this was something that he had started!

Laxus was seconds away from lighting the woman on fire, when Silver snapped. "That's it! That's ENOUGH!" He shouted, making the blonde and the rest of the soldiers look at him. " _I_ was the one that rallied the rest of Ishvan to rebel against your pathetic ass, Zeref! I was the one that fought as hard as I could to get my children back!"

Mika's voice was barely audible when she muttered, "Sil…ver…"

"So if you're going to light ANYONE on fire, then I SHOULD BE NEXT AND YOU LET MY WIFE GO!" Silver screamed. If there was any way to wake the blonde soldier up even if it was only a slight amount, this was it. Bit by bit, Dreyar was starting to see this man's tenacity and will to fight even when escape was hopeless and impossible.

Then Zeref clapped a few times in a slow speed. "Well done," he praised. "But I must ask you something… Earlier you said that you would curse me until your very last breath…but…how can you do that if you can't even speak?" At that moment, Elfman took a long pike, about the six feet in length and rammed it down Silver's throat. His teeth cracked and broke while his throat and insides ripped apart as the steel forcefully went down. The older man screamed in agony as blood gushed out from his mouth, and his body jerked and convulsed until it was still and his eyes rolled to the back of his head.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" Mika screamed as fresh tears poured from her eyes.

Laxus looked away as he felt a spectrum of emotions. His stomach churned and tightened with the knots of regret. He wished that he could have finished things with his former opponent and had given him an honourable death, but he had a place to keep. While his conscience started to scream at him to use the fire on Zeref, he fought it off, realizing that even if he did such a thing, then he would be outnumbered. What point would it serve?

He looked at Mika. The least he could do was send this poor woman away, and when the time is right, when he's fully awakened, he will be able to make it up to their children. Right now, there wasn't much he could do. He stepped toward the shaking woman and mouthed the words that only she could hear, "Forgive me…and rest in peace." Then he lit her on fire.

Mika was too exhausted to scream. Not even the flames could hurt for she was too numb to feel any pain. At least, there was a better place where she could watch her children. With a small smile on her face, she closed her eyes and accepted Death's cold embrace.

Laxus blew out the torch and walked back to his spot in line. This was going to be etched into his nightmares…forever. He could only drown out the sounds of cheering and people chanting Zeref's name while he celebrated the deaths of five innocent, but brave people.

 ***back to present***

He waited for his wife to say something, and his heart hurt after he finished his story. She was starting to hate him, he could tell.

"So all the screaming and nightmares," She said, making sense of it all, "was from that day?" She looked at him.

Laxus nodded wordlessly. He felt helpless. Why can't she just finish it off and end things right there? He felt like she was holding a gun to his head, and he was waiting for her to pull the trigger. Just end it already!

Mirajane nodded and looked at him. "You know if anyone were to listen to this story, they would hurt you for it."

Laxus nodded again. _What are you waiting for?!_

"But you changed," she spoke again. This made her husband open his eyes and give her a puzzled look. "You were only following orders, and while I want to punish you for such a horrible thing…it wasn't fully your fault. But…" She suddenly glared at him.

 _This is it!_ He thought once again.

"I have one more question…" She smacked him across the fact. "If you were JUST waking up, then why the hell didn't you stop it?!"

"I told you why," Laxus replied. "Zeref has all the power in the world. He has an _army_! One man versus all, the chances of getting out of that are slim to none."

"But you told me yourself you were tested with super-human serum!" Mira shot back. "Crow would have been a challenge, I can understand, but the rest?"

"It was the same thing with Elfman too!" Laxus argued. "All soldiers were given the serum! It wasn't just me and Crow! They were all highly trained! Not to mention, you know what will happen if any of us rebelled against him, do you?!" He reached behind her neck and ghosted his fingers over her scar, just underneath her ivory locks.

Mirajane widened her eyes as she felt the scar, and her body trembled. How she remembered that dastardly chip! That cruel chip that marked all employees as tools…as slaves of Dragon Corporation – it all made sense to her. Anyone who rebelled would feel agonizing burning at the touch of a button. There would have been no where Laxus would run, and that was the worst part of it. She looked at Laxus with tear-filled eyes and rested her head against his chest. "You're safe now," her voice wavered as she whispered. "They won't hurt you anymore."

This was one of the times where Laxus would feel his most vulnerable, like a newborn baby. Tears filled his eyes as he wrapped his arms around her. "If Gin found out…if Kunou found out…"

"I will set them straight," his wife replied, feeling her husband's worry. "No one can truly understand the horrors both of us went through at that place…well no one except for a select people – Ur, Liam, Kagari, Takuma, Minerva…now Gray." She lifted her head up again to look into his eyes. "But now that you told me, you must do something."

"Anything," Laxus replied as he wiped away her tears.

"When Gray calms down, you must tell him the truth."

"I had planned to do so from the beginning."

"And you must take full responsibility. You must protect him at all costs. Prove to him that you're someone who he can trust." She traced her fingers along the lines of his abs, "My brave soldier."

Laxus smiled. He certainly felt like he was the luckiest man in the world. Anyone would have left him after hearing such a horrible story, but Mirajane understood him the most. He kissed her lips deeply. "Thank you," he said as he gently pressed his forehead against hers.

Gin listened outside the window. As he heard the story, he was tempted to walk in and kill the wounded man himself, to save him from his misery. However, that would mean hurting Mirajane, someone whom he saw as his sister. Still – he looked at the quarantined room where Gray was asleep in – someone like Laxus wasn't worthy of his trust, especially when he was the one that indirectly hurt the youngest member of their family, even if he was just following orders.

He rubbed the back of his neck. He was really starting to sound like a hypocrite for thinking such things. Of course, Dragon Corporation was to blame for all their troubles, so perhaps it wasn't his place to hate Laxus at all.

He walked toward the room and looked through the window. Gray was sleeping peacefully, tucked in his bed all safe and secure. He smiled as he watched him. Putting him in quarantine was a bad idea, in his opinion anyway, but Ur assured him that if nothing happened within a couple days then Gray was considered a rarity and can be let out. Tomorrow would be the final day.

He hoped that there would be peace until then. However, something did not feel right to him; something that he could not shake off. He walked into a room, which Ur had furnished to be a laboratory.

Meanwhile, Kagari walked into the room he shared with Takuma, but he stopped in the doorway. "Takuma?"

His aforementioned twin was sitting at his desk, going through old photographs. There was a glass and a bottle of bourbon beside him, and he had immersed himself into drinking while he studied the photographs. Kagari's eyes softened. The posture his brother took, the way he cradled his chin on his empty hand while his other hand held the glass – this was the image of a man that lost everything...almost everything. It was heartbreaking, and he knew that he was the only one right now who could reach out to him. "Takuma," he repeated.

"Hey Kagari," Takuma replied without looking at his twin, his voice almost monotone. "Here to see how pathetic I've gotten?" He took another sip as he moved the top photograph to the side so that he could see the next photograph underneath it. His hands shook when the next photograph was of him and Cana, during their first date. Tears brimmed in his eyes as his chest hurt.

"No, I'm here to see how you are," Kagari answered. "Looking at old photographs, I see." Takuma nodded as he quickly switched to the next one before taking another drink.

However, before he could bring the glass to his lips, Kagari grasped the glass to stop him. "Takuma...you can't beat yourself up like this." His brother just sighed. "While it's okay to grieve, drowning yourself in alcohol is not the way to live."

"That's how she did it," Takuma said. "Whenever she thought about her father, she always took out her favourite alcohol and started to drink it. Why can't I do the same thing?"

"Because," Kagari set the glass down, "it's not the correct way. While alcohol may numb the pain, it makes you feel more miserable than ever before. You are one of the most intelligent tacticians I know. You need to focus on getting stronger so that you can take Crow down. We need you, Takuma."

"I made a mistake. I stopped when I could have kept going."

"Even if you kept going, Crow would have still killed Cana...or any of us."

Takuma looked at his twin with slight shock in his eyes. Deep inside, he knew that his brother was right. However, that was what angered him most of all. His eyebrows furrowed in a glare. "He...would have still killed Cana?" He repeated. "He... _would have still killed Cana?!_ " He snarled. He stood up and whacked all objects – photographs, glass and bottle – onto the floor. The photographs scattered while the glass shattered. The contents of both glass vessels pooled onto the floor, beginning to soak the photographs. It was a good thing that Kagari saved those before they fully damaged. "How DARE you bring it up, Kagari?!" Takuma scolded. "How DARE you say SHIT like that to make things worse?!"

"You KNOW in your heart that I am RIGHT!" Kagari argued.

"CANA WAS CARRYING A CHILD, KAGARI! YOUR NEPHEW! MY SON!" Takuma screamed. "THAT CHILD WOULD HAVE BEEN THE BEST THING THAT EVER HAPPENED TO ME, AND NOW THAT WAS RIPPED AWAY FROM ME!"

"You're not LISTENING!" Kagari shot back. "You KNOW how Crow was! There would have been a chance he would kill us! He's called the REAPER for a reason, Takuma! You know this! I know this! Erza knows this! Mom knows this! EVERYONE KNOWS THIS!"

"Shut up! Just shut UP!" Takuma yelled, closing his ears while Kagari tried to explain himself. This was the last thing he needed. Why can't his brother just leave him alone?

That was when Kagari decided to take matters into his own hands. He took the back of his hand and struck his brother's face. Takuma's head moved to the side as a red imprint showed on his cheek. "Snap out of it!" Kagari snapped. "We need you in this war! I thought that maybe I could reach out to you so that you would need your brother. We were always together, Takuma. You were always protecting me, just as I always had your back. Do you remember that time when you nearly died?!" Tears fell down his cheeks as he glared at his brother, hoping that his words reached him.

Takuma's eyes widened. They were locked up together in their cell at Dragon Corporation, and they just had their testing done. However, the drugs that were applied to them had affected Takuma most of all, and he was starting to have a seizure from the side effects. This seizure would have ended his life if one of the doctors – Ur – wasn't there to help him when Kagari begged her to. "Kagari..." He trailed off.

"I nearly lost you," Kagari whispered as he stepped back. "You're killing yourself, Takuma! This isn't healthy and this wasn't the plan! When we got out of there, we made a promise that we would live and _fight_ to the bitter end! Do you remember?!" Takuma said nothing in response to this. "That's what I thought," Kagari continued as he turned around. "This talk is done. When you've finally become yourself again and are ready to wake up, come find me. In the meantime, drown in your stubbornness and feel sorry for yourself. This talk is done."

Takuma wanted to call out to his brother, but he couldn't bring himself to. While he was hurt and it was understandable, he felt like he had pushed his younger twin away. Would there ever be a chance that he would be the same again? He wasn't quite sure.

He sighed as he painfully reached down to clean up the broken glass. Perhaps he should rest up some more until his injuries were healed, then when he would be ready, he would apologize to his twin for how he had been acting. His brother was right about everything, especially one most important detail: the team needed him. He was one of their strategists for crying out loud! And a strategist cannot operate when his head is clouded with too much misery. One of these days his broken heart will mend, but until then, he needed to pick up the pieces and find his way back to the top. It will take time, but it will be worth it.

As Kagari walked out of the room, he was tempted to take one of his father's cigars and light it. However, he knew that if he did that, then he would make himself out to be a hypocrite. He was furious with Takuma right now and the way he was acting and that was just an addition to his worries. He felt that even though the team had their group training, something was missing. They weren't jelling together like a cohesive unit. There was too much anger, too much drama. If this continued onward, then they would never achieve their goal and they would all die.

He noticed Gin hurry toward Minerva, and with the intensity in his eyes, he knew that he just made an unsettling discovery. "What's wrong, Gin?" The ravenette asked, eyebrows furrowing with concern.

"I took samples of yours, Kaneko's and Liam's blood," Gin answered.

"And?" Minerva waited. The last time she spilled blood was several days ago when Kietsu tortured her. What could this mean?

"I found...something in your blood when I looked at the samples through a microscope," He replied. "I'm sure that Sting, Raiden, and Cynthia all have the same thing."

"And what was it?" The young woman in the group pressed on. However, before she answered, the entire place shook when a missile was launched. All three of the room's occupants staggered and stumbled while they tried to find something to hold onto. They were under attack.

* * *

Above the base, Kietsu grinned maliciously as he stared down the window of the helicopter. "Look lively, men and women," he said, "we're here."

Luna Fullbuster was seated next to Lucy in the helicopter as she looked out the window. Soon she was going to have her brother back, and soon those rebels were going to pay. This was what the twelve-year-old girl had been looking forward to the most when she was asked to participate in this mission...and she was going to have a front-row seat.

* * *

 **And now the set-up to an action-packed chapter begins! Will our heroes survive? Maybe yes, maybe no? We shall see! In the meantime, let me know what you guys think!**


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